Heroes in the Shadows
by Musical Ninja
Summary: Miwa, Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello, & Michelangelo lived a regular life until the day they save April O'Neil from the Kraang. Now they spend part of their time protecting New York City from aliens and evil Ninjas led by an old enemy, The Shredder. Not easy being a Teenage Ninja. Inspired by Sunny Lighter's "Same Difference". Nominated in 2018 TMNT Universal Readers Choice Awards.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer:** I just want to state for the record, I do not own Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. If I did, Karai would not be a mutant or under the Shredders control.

 **Author's Note:** This story was inspired by Same Difference by Sunny Lighter. Feel free to check that story out to compare both our stories and see if I did as well as Sunny Lighter. I hope to do as good a job. In this story, Leo, Raph, Donnie, and Mikey will be humans. Karai will be Miwa and Tang Shen will be alive. Just to be clear, I'm not ripping off Sunny Lighter, I just think this story works this way.

Please, tell me your honest opinions in the reviews, I won't accept anything other than honesty; your honesty will help me improve where I need work.

Okay, Let's get started. Here goes nothing.

* * *

 **Prologue**

For centuries in Japan, two ninja clans had been at war with each other; the Hamato Clan and the Foot Clan. One was good and honorable and the other was corrupt and ruthless. The war finally ended when the leader of the Hamato Clan, Hamato Yuta, led an attack on the Foot Clan village. After the battle was over, Yuta found an infant boy, no doubt the son of the Foot Clan leader, Oroku Kaiji. However, Yuta had no grudge against the boy, for he was only a child. It was then that Yuta decided that the best thing for the child was for him to take him and raise him as his own.

The boy was named Saki and Yuta raised him as his own alongside his own son, Yoshi. The boys grew up together as brothers, with Saki blissfully unaware of his true heritage. As they grew, Yoshi and Saki were the best of friends and greatest of rivals. Both of them became great masters of Ninjutsu, though Yoshi was more of a master than Saki.

Their rivalry escalated when they both fell in love with the same woman, Tang Shen. The two competed for her affections for a long time, and over time the rivalry drove a wedge in their friendship. However, Shen only had eyes for Yoshi. Saki could not accept their love and left home and did not return for a year.

In time, Yoshi and Shen were married and had twin children, a girl named Miwa and a boy named Leonardo. While both children had the same dark hair as their parents, Miwa, the elder of the two, had Shen's green eyes and Leonardo had deep blue eyes. Yoshi found this to be odd at first, then Yuta explained to him that this eye color is really not that uncommon on Yoshi's mother's side of the family, leading Yoshi to believe that Leonardo might have gotten his eyes from there.

When Saki returned, he had an infant boy with him. As it turned out, Saki had at one point impregnated a woman during his time away from home and she gave birth to a son, whom Saki named Sousuke. Sousuke had inherited his father's dark brown hair but he also had green eyes. Most people assumed the eye color came from the mother, who passed away after giving birth. He also had a birth mark on his chest, in the spot where his heart was, that resembled a lightning bolt. When Yoshi and Shen had heard of Saki's return as well as the news that he had a son around the same age as their twins, they went to see him in hopes that the children would all be friends. To their delight, all three of the children got along very well.

Shen often wished Yoshi would leave the ninja life behind and the two could live in America. Unfortunately, Yoshi was very dedicated to Ninjutsu and felt it was his responsibility to take over the family dojo when his father passed away someday. Shen felt that the life of a ninja was not the kind of life Miwa and Leonardo should be living; she felt ninjas had no more place in the modern world.

Saki saw how Shen felt and tried to take advantage. He tried to convince her to leave Yoshi for him by telling her that he would go to America with her and they could raise Miwa, Leonardo, and Sousuke together. What Saki did not expect was that Yoshi began to reconsider his decision for the sake of his children.

One night, while Yoshi and Shen were on their way to pick the twins up from Yuta after having a night to themselves, Saki unexpectedly showed up. To the shock of both Yoshi and Shen, Saki had the crest of the Foot Clan on his clothes and was armed with razor gauntlets. He urged Shen once again to choose him and leave Yoshi, but she refused. This angered Saki and he prepared to attack Yoshi. Shen pleaded for them not to fight, reminding them that they are brothers; however, Saki denied that they were ever brothers because they were not related by blood at all.

While he was away, Saki had done research upon his true heritage; Yuta had revealed to him some time ago that he was adopted, but did not say much else about his parents. In his research, Saki learned that his true father was Oroku Kaiji, the last head of the Foot Clan. Saki had learned a long time ago of the fall of the Foot Clan, so this could only mean that Yuta had taken him after he had killed Kaiji, Saki's father. Outraged by the new knowledge, Saki swore revenge. Saki got the members of the Hamato Clan together and convinced them that the clan was weak and to follow him instead. Hearing his words, the Hamato ninjas abandoned their clan and sided with Saki.

Yoshi told Shen to go to Yuta and protect their children while he faced Saki. Shen protested at first, but Yoshi told her that she needed to keep the children safe. Once Shen was at a safe distance, Yoshi and Saki fought, Saki using his gauntlets and Yoshi using Shuko that he had concealed. The two former brothers fought with all their strength until Yuta appeared with a sword in hand and assisted Yoshi. Yuta tried his hardest to urge Saki to abandon his dark ambitions and see that they were a family, but Saki refused to listen to anything Yuta had to say.

Seeing that Saki was not going to listen to reason, Yuta and Yoshi saw no choice but to fight the man that they once saw as a son and brother. As they were fighting, however, a fire was blazing from the woods where Saki had come from and had made its way to the area where Yuta, Yoshi, and Saki were having their battle. When Saki had convinced the Hamato Clan ninjas to join him, he had burned a Hamato Clan shrine to signify the clan's end; unknown to Saki, the some trees and plants in the woods, causing a forest fire. Yoshi tried to urge Saki to stop fighting so that they could all escape before the fire killed them all, but Saki would not listen; not even at the mention of his son. Saki prepared to finish Yoshi off once and for all, but Yuta intervened and took the blow instead. After taking the blow that was meant for Yoshi, Yuta fell hard to the ground, bleeding. Yoshi rushed to his father's side and held him close. As Yoshi sat with his father, Saki charged again to finish them both once and for all, but a burning branch got in the way and separated them. Yoshi and Yuta could hear Saki cry out in pain as the fire burned his face and his body.

Yoshi tried everything he knew to try to save his father, but Yuta knew it was too late and that he would die. As Yuta lay dying, he told Yoshi that he and the children had to survive because they were now they last of the Hamato Clan. Yoshi promised his father that he would protect the children, and Yuta took one last breath before he fell lifeless in his son's arms. Yoshi wept over the death of his father, then buried his father's corpse and went to look for his wife and children.

As he made his way to his father's home, Yoshi heard crying that could only belong to an infant. When he looked past some bushes, Yoshi found Saki's son, Sousuke. Yoshi wondered what the child was doing out here alone, but pushed that thought aside for the moment. As he looked at the boy, Yoshi remembered Saki was still out there and could see this boy's future being raised by Saki. Wanting to prevent that from happening, Yoshi picked him up and took him to his father's house.

When Yoshi got there, he told Shen what happened between him, Yuta, and Saki and how he had found the child alone in the woods. Fearing that Saki would eventually come after them again, Shen told Yoshi that it was no longer safe for them in Japan and that they had to leave. Yoshi agreed with Shen, but also wondered what to do about Sousuke; if Saki were allowed to raise him, he could become just like him, maybe even worse. After talking it over, Shen and Yoshi agreed that the right thing to do would be to take the boy into hiding with them and their children.

That very night, Yoshi and Shen packed what they could and fled with the three children into the shadows. They got on a boat the next day that took them to America. Upon arrival in New York City, Shen and Yoshi used some money that they had saved up together back in Japan to make a down payment on an antique shop with living space. Shen gave it the name, "Second Time Around", Yoshi had no idea where she came up with it, but did not argue with her choice. Yoshi and Shen figured it might be safer to change their surname in case Saki tried to find them, so they chose the name Kurama. With the money they earned from the shop, the Hamato family lived happily and comfortably together. They even adopted Sousuke legally and gave him a new name, one that they felt was more fitting, Raphael.

A year after moving to America, Shen had become pregnant a second time and gave birth to another set of twins. This time it was two boys whom they named Donatello and Michelangelo. Donatello had black hair and reddish brown eyes while Michelangelo had black hair and baby blue eyes. The five grew up happily together for fifteen years as brothers and sister.

Meanwhile, Saki, or Shredder as he preferred, had tried to hunt down the Hamato family with no success. He vowed to find Shen and the twins and make them his, as well as destroy Hamato Yoshi for the sins of Yuta and for the death of his own son, Sousuke. In truth, Saki's son was alive in New York being raised as Yoshi and Shen's son; and he could not be happier not to be a member of the Foot.

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 **Author's Note:** In case anyone's wondering, I picked the name "Second Time Around" from the TMNT universe. I thought it worked. Please let me know your honest opinions.


	2. One Crazy Night Part 1

**Disclaimer:** I'd like to repeat that I **do not** own Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. If I did I might do some things differently in the show. Not necessarily what I'm doing this fan fiction, but something.

 **Author's Note:** First of all, I'd like to thank the first five people for reviewing my story. I hope to get more reviews in the future. Next, I'd like to let everyone here now that I've fixed the errors that were pointed out to me in the prologue.

Now, without further adieu, here's the official first chapter.

* * *

 **Chapter 1: One Crazy Night Part 1**

For years the Hamato family had lived together in peace. When the children were four and five, Yoshi and Shen started to notice that the children had talent for Ninjutsu. With Shen's permission, Yoshi decided to train the children in the art of Ninjutsu just like his father had trained him. Shen mostly agreed to their training in Ninjutsu because she feared that Oroku Saki might find them someday and she wanted her children to be able to protect themselves. While Yoshi taught them the ways of the ninja, he also taught them that they were to only use their skills when it was absolutely necessary. They used an old abandoned subway station underground as training space, so no one would see them.

And so, for eleven years Miwa, Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello, and Michelangelo trained together and grew stronger with time; in skills and in bond. At the same time, Yoshi had told them everything about Oroku Saki, the Shredder, including the fact that Raphael was his biological son. Even with the knowledge that they weren't blood related, Raphael still saw his adoptive family as his family and his siblings saw him as their brother. For Yoshi and Shen, this was a clear sign that Raphael would not become Saki; and that made them very happy.

By fifteen and sixteen, the children were powerful enough to take on men twice any of their sizes. They even each had their ninja weapons. Miwa was given the Tessen, Leonardo got twin Katanas, Raphael chose twin Sai, Donatello's weapon was a Bo staff with a hidden blade, and Michelangelo got a pair of Nunchuku (often pronounced nun chucks) that convert into a Kusarigama. They kept the promise they made to their father and only used their ninja skills when it was absolutely necessary, so nobody outside the family knew about their ninja heritage; when seen fighting, most people just assumed they took advanced martial arts classes. Ninja skills aside the children had relatively average lives with school and friends, and Donatello's case a crush. The boys even started calling themselves and each other by nicknames; Leo, Raph, Donnie, and Mikey.

By now, Miwa was fairly tall with shoulder length black hair and green eyes. She usually wore a green short sleeved hoodie, black jeans, and sneakers. In short, She resembled a younger Tang Shen.

Leo was slightly shorter than Miwa and had begun to resemble Yoshi as a teenager with his short jet black hair; only his eyes were blue instead of brown. Leo's usual attire consisted of a Blue t-shirt, denim jeans, and sneakers.

Raph was Leo's hight and still had Saki's dark brown hair and his mother's green eyes, but he often had his hair spiked. He liked red a lot, so he usually wore a red t-shirt with black jeans and sneakers. He also occasionally wore these black fingerless gloves he was fond of.

Donnie about Miwa's hight and had short black and his same reddish brown eyes. He often wore a purple polo shirt, brown pants, and sneakers. He also had a gap in his upper front teeth from when he and his siblings were training.

Finally, Mikey was slightly shorter than his oldest brother's and had short black hair and baby blue eyes. He had a thing for orange so he often wore an orange t-shirt, blue jeans, and sneakers. He also occasionally wore a pair of goggles on his head. He once tried to bleach his hair blonde, but his parents stopped him before he could.

One day, Leo found out about a movie titled, "Mega Ranger's: The Movie" that was going to premier in theater and thought it would be cool for him and his siblings to go see. So he asked his parents if they could go. Yoshi and Shen agreed to let them go as long as they had a chaperone of some kind; meaning either one of them or a friend's parent who was responsible. Luckily, Leo had a chaperone in mind.

On the day of the premiere, the sibling's came straight home from school and began changing into their costumes; they were all going to dress as Mega Ranger's. All of the Mega Ranger costumes seemed fairly similar in design, simple body suit with a white V-stripe on the chest area, they each came in different colors and the girl costumes came with skirts. Leo dressed as the blue Ranger, Miwa was yellow, Raph was red, Mickey chose green, and Donnie got a black one with silver lining for the sixth ranger, the midnight ranger. This had Donnie wondering who else was joining them as the pink ranger.

"Hey, Mikey, can I ask you something?" Donnie asked as he was finishing his costume in his and Mikey's shared bedroom.

"Sure, D," said Mikey, zipping up his costume, "Ask away."

"Is someone else joining our party?" Donnie asked, "Cause I noticed we have every ranger but pink. And you guys seemed pretty set on me getting Midnight."

"Oh, yeah," said Mikey, "We thought it would make sense to have all six from the show, so we invited April O'Neil to be pink."

"Oh, cool," said Donnie, as he picked up his helmet. Then he realized what Mikey had just said his eyes widened in shock and he dropped his helmet as he whirled around and asked, "Wait! What?!"

"Yeah," Mikey casually said back, putting on his gloves, "It was Leo's and Miwa's idea to invite her. And Raph got the idea to have you dress as the Midnight Ranger."

At Mikey's words, Donnie's face turned red as a stop light and he yelled at the top of his lungs, "MIWA! LEO! RAPH!"

* * *

In the living room, Miwa, Leo, and Raph had just finished putting their own costumes on and were waiting for their younger brothers. Leo was watching his favorite show "Space Heroes", Raph was reading a magazine, and Miwa was chatting with her friends online. Suddenly, they heard one of their younger brothers yelling their names.

"What's up with Donnie?" said Raph, "He sounds mad."

Right on cue, Donnie came storming into the living room. His siblings could tell just by looking at him that he was indeed mad about something. Mikey followed close behind, trying his hardest to calm his immediate big brother down.

"April O'Neil is coming and you guys didn't tell me?!" Donnie angrily yelled at his brothers and sister.

The three looked at Mikey, knowing it must've been him who told Donnie about April, and Raph said to him, "Nice going, Mikey."

Mikey groaned and said, "Hey, don't blame me. You're the one who didn't make it clear that I wasn't supposed to say anything."

At that statement, Raph rolled his eyes and said, "I said we were surprising Donnie. I don't know how I could've been clearer."

Seeing that there was no point in hiding anything from Donnie, Leo took a breath and told him, "Okay, I'm sorry we didn't say anything. But I just didn't want you to get nervous and change your mind about going."

"Yeah," said Miwa, "We didn't want you to miss out. Is that so wrong?"

Donnie, still upset with his siblings, only glared at them and replied, "More like you wanted to see me act like a spaz in front April. And make fun of my feelings for her. And while we're talking, what was your reason for having me dress as the Midnight Ranger anyway? What were you hoping to gain? Trying to make me look like a hero-wannabe?"

"No," said Leo, "That's no it at all."

"Then why?" Donnie asked, crossing his arms.

"We thought she would think it's neat that you two are dressed up like a couple," said Miwa.

"What?" Donnie asked, starting to feel a little embarrassed.

Mikey laughed a little and said, "Dude, everybody knows that the Midnight Ranger and the Pink Ranger are a couple. If April sees you in this when she's wearing her pink costume, she's bound to like you."

Donnie frowned at his siblings and said, "Or she'll think I'm a creep and never speak to me again."

Leo could see how sad his brother was at the moment. So he put his hand on Donnie's shoulder and told him, "I'm sure she won't think that about you. Just come with us and you'll see."

Donnie was starting to feel a little better after Leo said that. He smiled warmly at his brother and Leo, in turn smiled back at him.

Just then, Shen came into the living room and said, "Mr. O'Neil and April are here. You five had better be ready to go."

Right after Shen said that, Donnie started freaking out. He was very nervous about being around due to the fact that he had a crush on her. He was so nervous that he was now starting to hyperventilate. Shen saw this and rushed to her son's aid. She coached him as he breathed in and out until he calmed down.

Once was calm, Donnie stood up from the couch and went to his room to get his helmet, then joined his siblings as they went downstairs to meet up with April and her father.

"Okay, Donatello, you can do this. It's no big deal. We're just going to the movies," Donnie continued to tell himself I'm an effort to keep calm.

* * *

Once they all got outside, the Hamato siblings were greeted by a red haired girl around their age coming out of a car that was being driven by a middle aged balding man, who was obviously the girl's father. The girl was Donnie's crush, April O'Neil, and the man was her father, Kirby O'Neil. At the moment, April was dressed in her Pink Mega Ranger costume.

"Hey, guys," said April, as she walked over to them, "Ready for the premiere?"

"You have to ask?" said Raph, excitedly.

"Of course we are," said Leo, equally excited.

"You bet," Mikey said, feeling the same as his brothers.

"Sure," Said Miwa, just as excited.

Donnie did not answer at first, so Miwa nudged him in the shoulder. This caused him to jump a little and just nervously reply, "Mhm."

April then noticed Donnie's costume, smiled, and said, "Wow, Donnie, you're dressed as the Midnight Ranger. With your costume and mine together, we look like a couple."

At this, Donnie blushed and chuckled nervously as he said, "Yeah, I guess we do."

The two just looked at each other for a bit, until Miwa cleared her throat and said, "We better get going if we don't wanna be late for the movie."

This brought April and Donnie back to reality and April said, "Oh! Okay, let's get going."

And with that, the teens all got into Kirby's car and took their seats; with Miwa making sure Donnie sat next to April. When the other four siblings invited April, their main goal was to try to get them get to know each other better. Unfortunately, so far neither of them were really talking to each other too much; infact, everytime April looked at Donnie, he got nervous and looked away from her.

Leo laughed a little and said to his other siblings, "Okay, this plan was better in my head."

Raph crossed his arms and gave his brother an annoyed look as he said, "Ya think?"

Mikey sighed and commented, "Worst fix up ever."

Miwa then interjected, "Now hold on. Let's wait till we get to the theater. Things could get better there."

The boys wanted to argue, but it was hard to disagree with that logic. When in a movie theater, teenagers tend to feel like getting closer to each other.

Once they arrived a block away from the theater, Kirby parked the car and he and the kids got and started heading towards the theater. As they walked together, Miwa, Leo, Raph, and Mikey talked over their plan to get Donnie and April to sit together in the theater. While everyone was walking and talking together, nobody noticed the white that was coming towards them until it screeched to a halt right in front of them just as they were about to cross the street.

"Hey! Watch it, you maniac!" Raph shouted at the van.

He might have changed if Leo had not grabbed his arm and said, "Let it go, Raph. It's not worth it."

Right after Leo said that, five men came out of the van. Four of them were identical men with black hair and black business suits; they also appeared to have blank emotionless faces. The fifth was fairly average with brown hair and dressed in a white sleeveless shirt and denim jeans. Kirby and the kids felt nervous as the identical men began advancing on them.

"Nice going, Raph," Mikey whispered to said brother.

Raph in turn whispered back to Mikey, "Me? What did I do?"

"They probably got mad when you yelled at them," Mikey whispered back.

Raph got ticked off at what Mikey had said and got ready to say something back when Miwa stopped him.

"Calm down, guys, I'll handle it," she said, and then she turned her attention to the men in black and said, "I'm very sorry about my brother. He has a bit of a temper. I honestly don't know where he gets it from, but you really shouldn't take anything he does or says too seriously-"

Before Miwa could say anymore, one of the men pushed her to the ground and continued making his way towards the rest of the group. This caused everyone else to panic.

"Uh, guys, I don't think they're interested in talking," said Mikey, who was starting to feel a little scared.

Kirby got in front of the kids and asked the men, "Who are you? And what do you want?"

The man in black who seemed to be the leader replied in a robotic tone of voice, "The ones known as Kirby and April O'Neil will come with Kraang to the place Kraang is taking them."

Hearing that statement, Miwa got up from where she was lying and charged one of the men as she yelled, "Think again!"

Miwa ran straight towards the man and punched him hard in the face. Unfortunately, she wound up hurting her own hand and the man appeared to be unharmed. As Miwa waved her hand in pain, one of the men grabbed her and threw her right into Raph, causing him to fall to the ground with his sister.

Kirby started to fear even more for his daughter's safety and ordered her and the other kids to run away. April wanted to protest, but Mikey grabbed her and started running with his brothers and sister. Unfortunately, three of the men got in their way while the third knocked Kirby unconscious and threw him in the back of the van with the fifth man helping him.

Seeing no way around the problem, the Hamato siblings prepared to fight, while April hid behind a trash can. The five got into fighting stances as the men came at them. At first they thought it would be like all of their past fights, but they were quickly proven wrong. These men were nothing like the usual Purple Dragons, muggers, or school bullies they had fought in the past. They were faster, stronger, and tougher than any regular person they had ever fought before. Miwa and Raph managed to take one down together, but that was mostly just an accident; Miwa was fighting the man hand to hand when Raph crashed into the both of them.

And if things were not bad enough, during the fight one of the men managed to grab April and began carrying her towards the van. Donnie saw what happened and tried to save her but the fifth man tackled him to the ground and held him down.

The fifth man looked to the identical man and asked, "Want me to finish this brat off for you or do you wanna do it?"

"Get off me!" Donnie demanded, "And let April and her dad go!"

The man that threw Kirby into the van responded by walking over to Donnie, ignoring April's demands to leave Donnie alone, and the fifth man and kneeling down. The man looked at Donnie for a moment, as though he was studying him. Then he said, "Negative. Do not destroy. Human identity confirmed: Donatello Kurama. Capture the one known as Donatello Kurama along with the ones known as Kirby and April O'Neil."

On his leader's order, the man holding Donnie started dragging Donnie towards the van. Donnie struggled against his grip the whole time.

"No! Let go of me!" Donnie demanded. He then turned in his sibling's direction and screamed as loud as he could, "Help!"

Miwa heard her brother scream and tried to go to help him. Before she could, however, the man she and her other brothers were fighting threw Mikey at Leo, dodged Raph's charge, and then ran towards Miwa and knocked her down before catching up with the others.

Miwa looked up and caught a glimpse of April and Donnie bound and gagged with tape in the back of the van before the doors closed and the van drove away.

Miwa quickly got and running after the van as she yelled to her three remaining brothers, "They're getting away! They've got Donnie!"

Upon hearing what their sister said, Leo and Raph got up and followed close behind her. Mikey was still feeling a little dizzy from being thrown, but he still managed to get back up and attempted to follow his brothers and sister. He managed to walk a few steps before he noticed one last business man standing in front of him.

"Where'd your friends take my brother?" Mikey asked the man, but he did not answer. Mikey gave him a stern look and added, "Not talking, huh? Well, I've got ways of making you talk."

Right on cue, Mikey charged at the man and prepared to punch him. However, the man caught Mikey's fist in his hand and threw Mikey to the ground. Mikey looked up at the man and who was standing in the same place as before; unfazed by what happened. Seeing that he was at a disadvantage against this man, Mikey screamed in fear, got up, and started running for his life.

As Mikey ran through the streets, the man was in hot pursuit. Mikey ran into an alley, hoping to escape the man, but the man found him and began advancing on him. Mikey felt very scared and was sure he was going to die in the alley.

Suddenly, just as the man was inches away from Mikey, a familiar voice shouted, "Get away from my little brother!" and a trash can fly right at the man and hit him in the head, causing him to fall to the ground.

Mikey looked up and saw Miwa, Leo, and Raph standing in the alley; Mikey guessed Raph must have been the one who threw the trash can.

Miwa ran to check on Mikey, while Leo yelled at Raph, "Raph, look what you've done! I think you killed him!"

"I had no choice, Leo! You saw him. He would've killed Mikey!" Raph yelled back, "What would you have done?"

Leo tried to answer, but found he had none. In truth Leo was unsure what he would have done.

"I'm fine, Sis," said Mikey, "But what about Donnie? Or April and her dad? What happened to them?"

Miwa shook her head and said, "They got away before we could catch up with them. I'm so sorry, Mikey."

At the news Mikey fell to his knees and broke down crying. "No. Donnie," he said between sobs.

Miwa knelt down and hugged her brother as he cried. Leo went over to his sister and youngest brother and joined in the hug. Raph started walking towards his siblings to join them when he noticed that the man's hand was moving. As he stared at the man, Raph noticed his whole body twitching, which could only mean one thing- this man is still alive.

"Hey, guys!" Raph called, "This guy's alive!"

Mikey sniffled a little and asked, "So?"

Leo's head perked up as he realized what this news meant. "He works for the guys who took Donnie and the O'Neil's," he said, "Meaning he can tell us where they are."

"And we can go there and save them!" Miwa realized, "That's perfect! Let's get him to talk."

The four teens went over to the man on the ground and flipped him over, hoping to get answers from him. When they flipped him over, the siblings were shocked to see that some his face was broken off. However, the most shocking thing was not that he was missing some of his face, which in itself was shocking enough, but that instead of blood or muscle was blue metal and a glowing red eye. There also sparks flying out.

"What the-?" Leo asked.

"He's a robot?" Raph asked.

"Maybe they were all robots," Mikey suggested.

"That certainly would explain a lot," Leo said.

"You mean like that weird way they talked?" Raph asked.

"Or like when I punched a guy with my bare hands it hurt like heck?" said Miwa, rubbing her hand for emphasis.

Suddenly, the robot's stomach area started moving until the suit ripped open. The four teens looked at the now open stomach area and, their shock, there in the robot's stomach was what appeared to be a brain with a face!

"What. The heck. Is that?" Raph asked, speaking in syllables.

"Looks like a brain," said Mikey, while Miwa got her phone out and took pictures of the brain and robot body.

Leo sent his sister a confused look, and she in turn explained, "We might need some evidence or mom and dad might think we're crazy."

Leo nodded in understanding while Mikey poked at the brain. He continued to poke at the brain until its eyes shot open and it growled at him. The kids screamed as the brain jumped out and latched itself onto Mikey's face. Thinking quickly, Leo grabbed the brain and pulled hard until it finally let go. It tried to grab onto Leo's face next, but Raph punched it and it flew right into the wall of a nearby building.

As the brain got back up and crawled away using its tentacles, the kids could only stare in shock at what just happened.

"Okay, did that really happen just now?" Mikey asked. His siblings nodded in response. "So it's not just me, then?"

"That's correct," said Leo.

"Okay," said Mikey, "So I guess that means I'm not crazy."

"No, you're not, little brother," said Miwa, "But one thing's certain. There's definitely something strange going on here."

* * *

 **Author's Note:** In case anyone's curious, I meant for the Mega Rangers to be based on the Power Rangers. I wanted to give the kids a reason for beings outside at the exact same time as Kirby and April, so I figured that the best idea would be for them to be going to the premiere of a new movie together. And I'm sure you're all wondering why I had the Kraang take Donnie along with the O'Neil's. I figured since Donnie's a super genius, something he made in a science fair or something might get featured in a magazine or on a website that might catch the Kraang's attention and get the idea that he could be useful to them.

Also, I gave Miwa the Tessen because I figured since Yoshi originally meant it for her it would make sense.

Well, I hope you guys liked it. Please leave a review.


	3. One Crazy Night Part 2

**Chapter 2: One Crazy Night Part 2**

After the fiasco with the brain creature that the kids assumed was some type of alien, the kids walked back home and explained to their parents what had happened. At the news that Donatello had been abducted, Shen naturally broke down in tears and Yoshi hugged her tightly. He was about to head for the phone to call the police when Mikey stopped him.

"Dad, wait!" said Mikey, "There's more! The guys who took Donnie and the O'Neil's were alien robots with brains in their chests!"

In response, Yoshi put his hands on his youngest child's shoulders and said, "Michelangelo, I understand that what happened was scary for you, but-"

Before Yoshi could finish, Miwa got her phone out and said, "It's true! I have pictures right here!" after getting the first picture up, Miwa showed her phone to Yoshi.

Yoshi took the phone in his hand and was shocked to see a picture of a man missing part of his face and underneath was mechanical parts and a glowing red eye. Equally shocking was the next one had the man's exposed stomach, which contained what appeared to be a brain with a face. Shen looked at the pictures as well and nearly screamed at what she saw.

"What is this?" Shen asked.

"I'm not sure myself, to be honest," said Miwa, "None of us are. But one thing we do know for sure is that whatever it is that's going on is complicated."

"Believe me, we wanted to call the police," said Raph, "But after we found out about the alien in the robot we rethought the whole idea."

"If we tell the police about this, it's likely they'll think we're crazy," said Miwa.

Shen thought about what her daughter had said and told her, "You make a very good point, Miwa. But now we must figure out how we are to save your brother and the O'Neil's."

"How are we gonna do that when we don't have any leads?" Mikey asked.

"Actually, we do have one," said Miwa, "There was one guy who looked and acted nothing like the others."

"So what?" Raph asked.

Miwa rolled her eyes at Raph and continued, "Odds are he's a human and a hired hand. If we find him, maybe we can get information from him on where to find Donnie and the O'Neil's."

Leo's face lit up at Miwa's idea and he added, "And I have an idea where he'll be."

"Awesome!" Mikey cheered as he pumped his fists, "Let's go there and get him!"

The four siblings were about to leave for the lair to get their gear when their parents stopped them.

"Out of the question!" said Shen, "I will not allow my children to intentionally put themselves in danger!"

"Mom, we have to go!" said Raph, "Donnie's in trouble! Somebody has to save him!"

"You are right, Raphael. Someone does have to save your brother," said Yoshi, "I will go. You four will stay here with your mother where it's safe."

"But, dad, you don't know what the man looks like or the type of vehicle he was driving," said Leo, "Only we know that. You have to let us go."

Miwa approached her Yoshi, looked him right in the eye, and said, "Dad, please, take us with you. You can't do this alone."

Yoshi began to ponder the idea. As much as he wanted to keep his children out of danger, he knew Miwa was right. His children were the ones who understood the situation the best, and only they knew what and who to look for. In that moment, Yoshi knew he had no choice; if he wanted to rescue Donatello, he would need his other children to help him.

"Very well, you may come with me," said Yoshi. The children smiled happily at the news, while Shen looked concerned.

"Yoshi, are you sure about this?" Shen asked in concern.

"Shen, I understand how you feel. I'm worried for them as well," said Yoshi, "But letting them come could be our only hope in saving Donatello."

Shen sighed sadly and replied, "You're right, Yoshi." she then went over to the bookshelf, picked up a picture and looked at it. The picture was of the family at the beach the summer of last year. She focused on the shot of her third son as she said, "Poor Donatello must be so scared right now."

* * *

At the moment, Donnie was not scared at all; he was trying to pick the lock of the cell that he, April, and Kirby were currently locked inside.

After the van drove away with them, the men who kidnapped them had taken them to what appeared to be a secret base. When they were brought inside, Donnie took note of the interior. The interior was lined with a metal that he did not recognize. Add that to the fact that there were alien robots walking around just screamed, "Not Normal!"

At the moment, Kirby was sitting helplessly on the cell bench, while Donnie tried to pick the lock and April banged on the window and yelled at the men.

"Hey!" April yelled as she banged on the window, "You can't keep us in here like this! We know our rights!"

"I don't think they care about that, April," said Kirby.

"We can't just sit here! We've gotta do something!" said April.

Donnie looked up from where he was crouched down and said, "I know that, April. That's why I've been trying to pick this lock. But it's difficult seeing as these guys are using advanced technology."

April looked down at Donnie and said, "No offense, Donnie, but I don't know if we can wait for you to pick that lock. We might have to come up with another plan."

"Like what?" Kirby asked.

Both Donnie and April started thinking of an escape plan. Finally, April came up with the idea to fake stomach pain in order for one of the men to open the door and come in the cell. At that point, Donnie and Kirby would sneak up behind the man and knock him out long enough to escape out of the open cell door. So, Kirby and Donnie hid in the corner while April fell on the floor.

"Ah! My stomach! The pain is unbearable!" April screamed in fake agony.

Just like she planned, a man in a suit came into the cell to check on her. Once the man was inside, Kirby and Donnie began quietly sneaking up behind the man to jump him. At the very last second, the man turned around and Kirby froze. Donnie on the other hand charged ahead and attacked him. Donnie began fighting the man in hand to hand combat. Thanks to his years of ninja training, Donnie was able to hold his own for a good amount of time. That is, until the man kneed him in the stomach and then punched him in the face, knocking him to the floor.

"Donnie!" April screamed. Then she glared at the man and yelled, "You'll pay for that!"

April then leapt forward, grabbed the man, and held on tightly. She pounded, pulled, and bit the man, but he was unfazed by any of that. The man ignored April's antics as he walked towards the cell door. Once there, the man grabbed April and put her on the floor before closing the door behind him and leaving.

After the man left, April knelt down and tended to Donnie. To her relief, it appeared as though Donnie would be alright.

She then looked up at her father and said, "I guess we _can_ just sit here."

Donnie looked up at April and weakly told her, "Just give me a minute to rest and then I'll try picking the lock again."

April shook her head and said, "I don't want those guys to hurt you again."

"So what do we do?" Donnie weakly asked.

Kirby let out a sigh and said, "I don't think there's anything we _can_ do."

This news made Donnie frown. He was trapped in a secret alien base and he might never see his family again. Then his face lit up at the thought of his family and he said, "Wait. My brothers and sister are still out there. Maybe they were able to get some help."

"Really?" April asked, "Do you think they can do it?"

"I'm sure they will," said Donnie; though he secretly worried about whether or not they would get there in time.

* * *

Meanwhile, Yoshi, Miwa, Leo, Raph, and Mikey were all perched on the roof of a building looking down at the street. By now they had all changed into their ninja gear. Leo's was black with some blue lining, a hood long sleeves, black gloves with wrist guards, a brown leather holster for his katanas, and complete with a blue mast over his eyes. Raph with a similar one to Leo's only it had red lining, a belt for his sai, and a red mask. Mikey's had orange lining, a belt for his nun chucks, and an orange mask. Miwa's had green lining, a belt where she could keep her tessen, and a green mask. Yoshi's was all black with a belt holster for his katana, and a black mask. He had also assigned them each a code name; Miwa was Karai, Leo was Ryu, Raph was Kurogane, Mikey was Naoto, Yoshi called himself Yamato. At the moment, they were waiting for one of the kidnappers to arrive at the building across the street.

"Are you sure he will be here, Leonardo?" Yoshi asked.

"I'm positive, dad," said Leo. And then he pointed to the building across the street and explained, "The logo on that building is the same as the logo on the van that was used to kidnap Donnie and the O'Neil's. The way I see it, if we wait here long enough, the guy that the aliens hired is bound to show up eventually. And when he does, we'll make him tell us where he and the aliens took them."

Mikey beamed as he said, "And then we can go there and save Donnie!"

"Exactly," said Leo.

Raph looked skeptically at his older brother and asked, "Are you sure this is gonna work?"

Leo grinned confidently and said, "Trust me, he'll be here any second."

"Remember what I told you before we left," said Yoshi, "When we confront the man, keep your faces hidden and do not use your real names."

"Right," said Miwa, "Because anonymity and secrecy are two of the most valuable weapons in a ninjas arsenal."

"Yes," said Yoshi, "And, knowledge of our family being ninjas could put us all at great risk."

"Got it," said Raph, as he and his siblings continued to wait for the man to show up.

Raph was starting to regret going along with his brother's plan because they wound up waiting on that roof for two hours. During which time, he, Miwa, and Mikey had to try various activities to keep from falling asleep on the roof. At one point, Mikey had talked them into playing I-Spy.

"Okay, here it goes. I spy with my little I: something beginning with the letter B," said Mikey.

"Bonehead," said Miwa, in a bored tone.

"Nope," said Mikey.

"Blockhead," said Raph, in the same tone of voice as his sister.

"No," said Mikey.

"I give up," said Miwa, still bored.

"Me too," said Raph, also bored.

"Building," said Mikey.

"Oh," said Miwa, as bored as ever.

Finally, Raph got so fed up with waiting that he could not take it anymore. He got up from where he was sitting, walked over to his father and older brother and started yelling.

"We've been up here for two hours!" he shouted, "Let's face it, the guy's not gonna show up!"

"We must be patient, Raphael," Yoshi said, attempting to calm down his second son.

Raph let out a sigh at this and said, "No disrespect, dad, but I think we need a back up plan, because we're not getting anywhere with this one."

Leo turned to face Raph and said, "He'll be here. Just give him a little more time."

At this, Raph groaned and said, "Face it, Leo! This is a waste of time! The guy's not gonna show up!"

Leo looked back at the ground, then he smirked at what he saw and said, "You sure about that, Raph?"

Raph frowned and asked, "He just showed up, didn't he?"

To answer his question, a van pulled up next to the building across the street; the very van that they had been waiting for. At this, Raph muttered to himself that he should have complained two hours ago. After the van parked, the ninjas walked over to the edge of the building and pulled up their face masks.

Leo than stood proudly and said in a tone of voice that matched his Captain Ryan from his favorite TV show, Space heroes, "Gentleman, lady, I have a bold and daring plan. There is no time for hesitation. My orders must be-"

Before he could say anymore, Leo caught Yoshi giving him a stern look. "Leonardo, this is hardly the time to impersonate your favorite TV character," he said.

"Sorry, dad," said Leo, looking dejected. He then caught Raph snickering at him and snapped, "Shut up!"

"Enough!" said Yoshi, "We have to go now,"

The four teens nodded and jumped off the building with their father. They all jump out in front of the man just as he got out of the van and started walking away. He jumped in surprise when he was suddenly surrounded by five ninjas.

"We have some questions for you," said Yoshi, "And you are not going anywhere until they are answered."

"We can do this the easy way, or, my vote, the hard way," said Raph, pulling out his sais to prove his point. His siblings followed suit by pulling out their own weapons.

"Look at this logically, there are five of us and one of you," said Miwa with a slight laugh, "Plus, you appear to be unarmed. What're gonna do?"

The man just stood still for a moment, and then he pulled out a strange looking gun and fired multiple laser shots at the ninjas. The ninjas jumped out of the way just in time to avoid being hit, while the man rushed to the van and drove away.

The ninjas saw this and rushed to the rooftops to pursue him. During their pursuit of the van, the ninjas had to jump across more roofs and dodge more laser fire. The chase ended with Leo throwing a shuriken star at one of the tires, causing the tire to pop and the van to flip over and land on its side.

Yoshi landed next to his eldest son and said, using his codename, "Nicely done, Ryu."

Leo smiled at his father, then turned to the ground and said, "Thanks. Now let's go get some answers."

The ninjas landed on the ground and hid behind a building. Yoshi peaked around the corner to make sure the cost was clear before whispering to his children to sneak around the back of the van.

Following their father's orders, the four teens snuck around to the back of the van. Once there, Raph lifted up the back door, which had been forced opened due to the impact of the crash. When Raph lifted the door, something fell out and rolled over to Mikey's feet. Looking down, Mikey saw that it was a cylindrical canister with some type of green liquid inside.

"Wow," said Mikey, fascinated by the canister. He then picked it up and stared at it and said, "This looks cool."

Leo took the canister from Mikey and examined it as he asked, "What is this?"

Yoshi looked curiously at the canister and said, "I have no idea." then he turned to the man from the van, who was trying to sneak away from them, and said, "But I'm willing to bet our _friend_ here knows something."

Before he could get away, the van driver was grabbed by Mikey. Mikey then started pulling on his face and head as though trying to pull it off. This act shocked his family.

When he was done pulling, Mikey turned to his family and said, "Just wanted to make double sure he wasn't a robot."

Raph rolled his eyes at his youngest brother, while Yoshi walked up to the man and said in a serious tone, "Now, you will answer our questions. Who are you? Who are your employers? Why did you abduct that man and those two teenagers? And what is in this canister?"

The man glared at Yoshi and said, "The name's Snake. And I got nothing to say ta you wack jobs."

Raph grinned under his facial mask and said, "Well, that's 'cause you don't know us yet."

The green masked kunouchi turned to the black masked adult ninja and asked, "Yamato, do we permission to use any means necessary for interrogation?"

Yoshi nodded his head and said to his daughter, "Permission granted, Karai."

"Sweet," said Raph. And then he tossed Snake to Leo and Mikey, who held his arms tightly to keep him from escaping.

Raph and Miwa walked over to Snake and gave him sinister looks as they contemplated what to do. Miwa started pacing back and forth as she talked out loud about her threats.

"Now, what shall we do to make you talk?" Miwa asked. She then pulled out one of her kunai knives and waved it around as she paced and said, "We could see how far I can shove this knife up your butt." this made Snake's eyes widen in shock, "Or we could heat up one of our metal weapons and press it against your skin."

Snake looked at the other ninjas and said, "This girl's evil, ya know that?"

Raph then grabbed the canister from Yoshi and said, "Or we could use some of the chemical bhe was transporting. Find out for ourselves what it is rather than wait for him to tell us."

Miwa grinned under her mask and said, "Oh, I like that one. Go for it, Kurogane."

Raph walked over to Snake with the canister in hand, unscrewed the lid and nonchalantly said, "Funny thing, Snake, I've never seen anything like this before, so I have no idea what it does. But judging by its glow, I would assume it does some pretty unnatural things. It could make you handsome, which could only help you. Or you could end up disgusting and deformed. Or it doesn't do anything at all except make a mess. " Raph then grinned manically under his mask and said, "Let's find out, shall we?"

Raph slowly started tilting the container so that the contents could fall on Snake. Snake's eyes widened in shock as the goo came closer and closer to his face. He for a moment looked over at Yoshi, hoping that the adult would stop this, but Yoshi simply watched what the boy was doing.

Finally, Snake caved and screamed, "Okay! Okay, I'll talk!" Raph pulled back the goo, and Snake continued, "They call themselves 'the Kraang'. They've been grabbing scientists from all over the city."

Leo smiled under his mask at what happened and said, "Well, that worked pretty good."

Raph simply smiled proudly under his mask and said, "Of course it did. Would you want this crud touching you?"

Mikey shrugged and said, "Maybe." his family looked confused at him, then he added, "For all we know it might make me cooler."

Miwa rolled her eyes, then turned back to Snake and glared at him as she asked, "What about the boy? I know they most likely took the girl to keep her father under control, but why did you and these 'Kraang' take that boy? He had nothing to do with them."

"Beats me," said Snake. Miwa held up knife up to his face, scaring him, and he told her, "Okay, I asked the Kraang why they wanted him and they told me he was some kind of genius and that they could use him."

 _'So that's it.'_ Miwa thought to herself, _'They must've seen the article about his Science Fair victory last year. Or they've been tracking him.'_

Leo then glared at Snake and asked, "What do they want with scientists? And the kid too?"

"I don't know," said Snake, trying to deny that he knew anymore. Raph started shaking the canister of goo, as if threatening to pour it on him again, so Snake told them, "All I know is they're taking 'em out of the city tonight. But I don't know where! I swear, I don't know anything else!"

"Awesome! There's still a chance for us to save them!" Mikey cheered. And then he turned serious as he and his family crowded around Snake.

Leo looked serious as he asked, "Where are they now?"

Reluctantly, Snake led the ninjas to the top of an apartment building where they could get a good view of where they were to go. While Mikey guarded Snake, Leo and Miwa looked through their telescope and binoculars to see what Snake wanted them to see. Not all that far from where they were, was a large triangular shaped building that looked like an army base surrounded by a field of weeds and dead trees.

"You'd think someone would be suspicious about this," said Miwa.

Yoshi simply shrugged and explained, "It has the appearance of being abandoned, so most people assume that it is and have no reason to suspect otherwise or report it to anyone."

"Oh," said Miwa, going back to her binoculars.

As Leo looked through his telescope, he counted the number of identical men, Kraang, all holding laser guns and said, "There's gotta be, like, twenty of them down there."

"Yeah," said Miwa, "And that's just the ones we can see."

Raph grinned under his mask and pulled out his sais as he said, "Alright! An all you can beat buffet!"

Yoshi put a hand on his second son's shoulder and told him, "We cannot blindly rush into a battle. We need a plan first."

"Why?" Raph asked.

Miwa smacked him upside the head and said, "Think for a minute, you dingbat! There are innocent lives at stake here! If screw we this up they're all goners!"

"Then we won't screw it up," said Raph, like it was simple.

Leo sighed and whispered to his brother, "Do I need to remind you how important one of them is to us?"

Raph sighed, knowing Leo was talking about Donnie, and said, "You're right, Ryu. I'm sorry."

"I know how you feel, Kurogane," said Mikey, taking his attention away from Snake. "I wanna beat them up too. We all do."

While Mikey was talking to his brother, Snake was reaching behind his back for something. Yoshi looked at his youngest son to tell him something and saw Snake pull out a hidden laser gun from behind his back. It was aimed right at Mikey's back.

Yoshi rushed towards Mikey and yelled, "Naoto, watch out!"

Just as Snake fired his gun, Yoshi jumped in front of his youngest son and took the shot himself. His children cried out in alarm and rushed to check on him, while Snake got up from where he was sitting and started running away.

"Don't worry about me," Yoshi weakly said as he held his side in agony. "Go after him."

"Will you be alright?" Leo asked.

"Never mind me," said Yoshi, "Go now!"

Leo nodded his head and he and his siblings ran after Snake as he himself climbed down a fire escape. They all climbed down after Snake and chased him through the streets. At one point, they had to split up into two pairs; Mikey with Miwa and Leo with Raph.

Miwa and Mikey ran in one direction, but did not find Snake. Leo and Raph ran another way and did not seem to have any better luck than the first team. Snake was actually hiding behind a dumpster nearby where Leo and Raph were looking for him. He thought they did not know he was there, but they actually did know and decided to act like they did not.

"Oh, great!" said Leo, faking annoyance. "We let him get away!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," said Raph, pretending to be arguing with his brother, "You're the one who split up the team, and that means _you_ let him get away."

Leo glared at Raph and whispered, "You're not helping."

Raph smirked at him and whispered back, "I wasn't trying to."

Leo groaned and said back, loud enough for Snake to hear, "Okay, you want me to come with a new plan, here's one: we go back to the lair, gear up, and at midnight we take Snake's van and drive right up to the gate. They'll think we're him and we'll cruise right in."

"And then we bust some heads?" Raph asked.

"And then we bust some heads," said Leo.

The brothers bumped fists and Raph added, "I love a happy ending."

And with that, the two brothers left to rejoin their father, brother, and sister in order to fill them in on the plan. Snake grinned thinking he had the advantage, and then left to tell the Kraang about the ninjas who were going to arrive at their base at midnight.

* * *

Once the family arrived back home, the children had Shen tend to Yoshi's wound while Leo explained they're rescue plan to everyone. The plan was to make the Kraang think they would be driving the van all the way to the gate, when they were really only going to be inside for part of the trip. Once they were at a good enough distance from the base, they would rig the van to drive itself right up to the gate. While the Kraang were focused on the van, they would not notice the ninjas scaling the wall with Shuko.

"Are you sure this is going to work?" Shen asked while she treated Yoshi's laser burn.

"I think it will," Leo confidently said.

Yoshi sat up from the couch and said, "No plan ever survived contact with the enemy. It is how you react to the unexpected that will determine whether or not you all succeed."

Mikey looked concerned at his father and asked, "You're not coming with us?"

Yoshi shook his head and said, "No, Michelangelo. The laser weakened me so badly that I will not be able to fight for some time. I'm afraid it is up to the four of you to complete this mission. And in order for you to function properly as a unit, one of you will have to lead in my place."

In response, Leo stepped forward and asked, "Can I be the leader?"

Raph pushed Leo aside and said, "Why should you be the leader? I'm the strongest fighter, it should be me."

"Excuse me?" said Miwa, arms crossed, "I'm the oldest, it should be me."

"No, it should be me," said Mikey. His siblings looked confused, and then Mikey added, "I don't really have a reason, I just think it'll be me."

Yoshi sighed and said, "This is a difficult decision. I will meditate."

Yoshi closed his eyes and appeared to be meditating. Not two seconds later, he opened his eyes and said, "It's Leonardo."

Miwa and Raph looked annoyed at their father's decision, but did not argue with him about it. Now that they had their new leader, the ninjas ran through the entire plan one more time just to be sure they all knew what to do.

Before they left to gear up for their mission, Leo began to worry about what might happen. Yoshi noticed and decided to talk to him.

"Are you alright, Leonardo?" Yoshi asked, "You seem distracted."

Leo sighed and said, "Honestly, I'm really nervous about this mission. There's so much riding on it. What if something goes wrong? What if we lose Donnie?"

"I share your concern, my son. Failure is a possibility that every leader must face," said Yoshi. He then frowned as he remembered his past, "It is something I had to face many years ago back in Japan during my final battle with my enemy, the Shredder.

Many years ago, Oroku Saki, as Shredder was called then, had been my friend and brother. But the love of a woman, your mother, came between us. Shredder could not accept it, and his jealously turned outward in a violent attack. And while he could not defeat me that day, the battle took the life of my father, Yuta, your grandfather, and was I forced to abandon Japan and disappear."

Leo looked up at his father and said, "But that's my point, dad, you lost everything."

"I lost many things that day. My father, my home, even my family name," Yoshi said in sadness. And then, almost instantaneously, he brightened up and said to his eldest son, "But I gained many things as well. Like your brothers. And I also still have you, your mother, and your sister."

Leo smiled, then he looked worried again and asked, "Do you think I'm ready for this?"

Yoshi put his hand on his son's shoulder and told him, "Leonardo, I made you leader for a reason."

"But what is that reason?" Leo asked.

Yoshi removed his hand and answered, "That is for you to discover on your own."

* * *

At midnight, Snake waited outside the front gate with several Kraang in human disguises and waited for the ninjas to show up. They all armed with laser guns and ready to start shooting at them.

After Snake assured the Kraang that were going to be there soon, one of the Kraang said to another, "Kraang are those who are coming to this place coming to this place?"

The other Kraang looked at the first and responded, "I lack that knowledge, Kraang. I will inquire of Kraang on that knowledge." the Kraang looked upward and asked, "Do have the knowledge if the ones coming to this place are near this place, Kraang?"

Before the third Kraang could answer, Snake got fed up with the way the Kraang were talking and yelled, "They're ninjas! Call them ninjas! Are the ninjas here?"

Right after Snake said that, a Kraang that was positioned on the wall pointed ahead and said, "There are lights of a vehicle which contain the ones you wish us to call 'the ninjas' coming to this place which you wish us to call 'here'."

"What are you talking about?!" Snake asked.

Right on cue, Snake turned around and saw his van driving very fast up to the gate. He and the Kraang open fired their laser guns at the van in an attempt to destroy the ninjas. Their lasers did no damage to the van and the vehicle did not slow it down either. The came closer and closer and Snake and the Kraang had to dive in order to avoid being hit before it crashed into the gate.

Snake landed roughly on the ground, then looked up just in time to see the strange chemical from before flying towards him. After it hit him, Snake screamed in pain as his body started changing. No one noticed his agonizing screams.

A Kraang went to examine the wreckage, but found that the van was empty. The van was rigged so that it could drive itself up to the gate.

The Kraang turned to the others and said, "The ones coming to this place are not in the vehicle bringing them to this place."

"Then in what place are the ones called 'the ninjas'?" another Kraang asked.

Unknown to the Kraang, the ninjas were nearby and scaling the wall with shuko. While they climbed, Mikey decided to ask siblings a question that had been on his mind for a while.

"Hey, guys, how do you think those 'Kraang' guys knew about Donnie anyway?" Mikey asked.

"I would assume that they got a hold of the article that he was in last year," said Miwa. Mikey still looked confused, so Miwa continued, "Donnie won first prize in last year's science fair and his project was featured in a magazine. I think the Kraang found the article and decided to target him."

"Whoa," said Mikey, "Those aliens really do hunt people, don't they?"

Once they were all inside, the ninjas started sneaking around looking for anything that might help them figure out where Donnie and the O'Neil's were being held. It was difficult ignoring the undisguised robots, but they managed to sneak around undetected.

Finally, Mikey found a locked cell and looked inside. When he saw his immediate older brother, Mikey called to his other siblings, "I've found them! They're here!"

Donnie smiled at the sight of his family, but April and Kirby looked confused about what some kids were doing there dressed up as ninjas.

"Don't worry, I'll get you all out," said Mikey, "Just hang on."

"Okay," said Donnie, "Just be careful not to set anything off."

Mikey simply shrugged and said, "Relax. I've got everything under control."

No sooner did Mikey say that when he looked around the wall for a way to open the call. He found a button on the wall that he assumed opened the cell and pressed it. Unfortunately, he right away found out that the button was not for opening the cell door, but for sounding the alarm.

Mikey cringed and said, "Oh, geez."

"Naoto!" the other ninjas groaned, while Donnie face palmed.

Leo turned to Mikey and asked, "Why'd you have to press that button?"

"I thought it opened the door," said Mikey.

Miwa glared at him and asked, "Did it occur to you that that thing right _next_ to the door is the lock? Or that the aliens wouldn't have made the cell door easy to open if they wanted to hold people captive?"

"Sorry," said Mikey, feeling slightly embarrassed.

Right on cue, Kraang droids came rushing down the hall and started open firing at the ninjas. Leo knew they had no choice but to fight back, but he also knew that they could not leave Donnie and the O'Neil's in that cell. At the same time, he wondered how he was going to get them out when the only one who might be able to pick the lock was trapped inside. That was when he got an idea.

"Think you can pick the lock from the inside?" Leo asked, "I was told you're quite the hacker."

"I tried that earlier," said Donnie, "It was pretty difficult even with my skills."

"Well, try again," said Miwa, "We're gonna hold them off and give you some time to try and figure it out."

"Okay," said Donnie, then he knelt down to try to pick the lock again, while his disguised siblings fought off the Kraang.

April walked up to Donnie and asked, "How exactly do you know these guys?"

"Sorry, April, I'm not allowed to say," said Donnie, still working on picking the lock, "Believe me, if could tell you, I would."

While Donnie was trying to pick the lock, Raph got very frustrated with how slow his brother's progress was going, so he walked up to the outside lock and started stabbing it with his sai. April was about to yell for Raph to stop when the back door opened and three pairs of Kraang droids came into the cell. Donnie stopped his progress to attempt to fight them, but two of the droids quickly overpowered him and held him tightly. The other two pairs grabbed Kirby and April and started dragging them away along with the pair that held Donnie just when Raph finally got the door open.

The ninjas were not going to give up so easily and ran to catch up to the Kraang, while trying to avoid being shot at. They all ran down the hallway until they reached the exit doors. The Kraang tried to chase them outside, but Raph quickly shut the doors and used the severed arm of a droid to bar them shut.

His siblings looked shocked at him and Leo commented, "You are seriously twisted."

"I'll take that as a compliment," said Raph with a smile.

They suddenly heard April scream for help and looked to see her, Kirby, and Donnie being forced to walked across the rooftop towards a waiting helicopter. Knowing that them being loaded onto the helicopter meant they would lose their brother, the ninja teens picked up their pace and headed for the roof.

They suddenly found themselves blocked by a large tree trunk-like leg. Following the trunk upward, the kids found themselves face to face with a giant, snarling, green, plant-like monster with a face like praying mantis. Instead of hands, the creature had lobster claw-like leaves. In the center of its chest, they saw what appeared to be a giant beating heart.

Donnie's eyes widened in shock when he caught a glimpse of it from the roof as he said, "Impossible."

The creature growled angrily at the ninjas and said, "You did this to me with that ooze! Now you're going to pay!"

Leo recognized the voice of the creature and said, "It's Snake! He's turned into a-a giant _weed_!"

Miwa's eyes widened in shock as she realized something important. "The chemical!" She said, "I forgot to take a canister out before we rigged the van!"

"You think that glowing stuff did this?" Raph asked in shock.

"What else could've done this?" said Miwa.

The creature that was once Snake screeched and snapped his claws at the ninjas. They had to dodge in order to avoid being hurt by his attacks. He did not seem interested in an apology that Mikey tried to give him and just seemed interested in destroying them. The teens fought back with all their might, but it was hard when their opponent regenerated his lost limbs.

During the fight, Leo heard the helicopter preparing to take off and their brother and the O'Neil's being brought closer to it.

Leo turned to his sister and said, "Karai, go! We'll take care of him!"

Miwa nodded Raph gave her a boost to get up to the roof before turning his attention back to the fight against Snake.

"We just need to hold him off until Karai gets back," Leo said to his brothers.

Right after Leo said that, more Kraang came out and started shooting at them.

"While not getting shot at by aliens," said Raph.

"Obviously," said Leo, as he got ready to fight more.

Meanwhile, Miwa finally made it to the roof just as the Kraang started trying to force a struggling Donnie into the helicopter. To save him, Miwa whipped out her Tessen and threw it right at the droids head. The Tessen hit the droid square in the face, causing it to lose its concentration long enough for Donnie to free himself from its grip.

Once Donnie was free, Miwa ran up to Donnie and started looking him over and asking if he was alright.

"I'm okay," said Donnie, trying to assure his sister. He then noticed another Kraang preparing to shoot her and screamed, "Look out!"

Donnie pushed her to the ground before the Kraang fired its laser and saved her from being shot. He then reached over, grabbed her Tessen, and returned it to her. She threw said weapon at the other Kraang and then finished it off by stabbing it with her hidden tanto sword.

Donnie sat up and saw the helicopter taking off with April and Kirby inside, and April was looking at him almost pleadingly. Donnie got ready to charge after the helicopter, but Miwa stopped him saying that she would get them. Donnie wanted to protest, but held his tongue when Miwa reminded him that he was unarmed and that she was sure that him going after the Kraang would only be giving them what they want. Reluctantly, Donnie stayed behind and left Miwa to rescue April and Kirby.

To get to the helicopter, Miwa found a long stick and used it to pole vault herself to the air transport. She grabbed the skid and dangled there as she planned to hijack it from the Kraang. Only problem was the helicopter kept swerving trying to shake her off. Miwa climbed across the skids and tried to get inside when a Kraang came out armed with a laser gun aimed at her.

"Oh, good," Miwa sarcastically said, "For a second there I thought this was gonna be too easy!"

The Kraang shot at Miwa, and she dodged by climbing underneath the helicopter. Thinking quickly, Miwa climbed back over to the Kraang, grabbed it around the neck with her legs, and threw it out of the helicopter. As the Kraang fell, it fired more shots at Miwa, only to hit the helicopter and cause April to fall out.

"Miwa! April!" Donnie screamed when he saw what happened, forgetting that he had to keep his families identities secret.

Luckily, April grabbed onto the skid just in time. As she held on for dear life, April looked directly at the ninja girl in front of her and stared in shock; she could swear she heard Donnie call her the same name as his older sister. However, before she could say anything, April lost her grip and fell towards the earth.

Miwa saw this and launched herself from the helicopter to catch April in midair. Using her ninja training, Miwa caught April and jumped, slid, and rolled down the building for a safe landing for herself and April. Donnie saw this and started making his way down the building to meet up with them.

"Are you okay?" Miwa asked April.

As April caught her breath, she looked up at the helicopter and said, "Dad."

Miwa looked up with her and saw the same thing. Miwa then turned back to April, sighed, and said, "I'm sorry. But it was either let them get away or let you fall."

"I understand, Miwa," said April, "Thank you for trying to save my dad, and for saving me."

Miwa was surprised to hear April use her real name, but did not let it show as she said, "My name is Karai."

"You don't have to lie," said April, "I heard Donnie call out your real name."

Miwa's eyes widened in shock, then she heard her brother coming their way and shot him a glare. Donnie shrank when he saw his sisters glare.

"We'll talk about that later," said Miwa, then she put April down and said, "Don't use my real name here. Or the others."

With that, they all rushed down to the ground just in time to see Leo, Raph, and Mikey leading snake, whom Mikey had renamed Snakeweed, straight towards a power generator with several Kraang shooting at them. Donnie remarked that that was both stupid and brilliant and Miwa could not help but laugh at their antics when taunting Snakeweed and the Kraang, especially Leo's because he did not act silly very often.

The taunting kept up until Snakeweed was right in front of the generator. Leo taunted the Kraang and made them fire at the generator, causing it to explode and fry Snakeweed. The resulting explosion was enough of a distraction to give them time to escape with April and Donnie.

After they left, the Kraang began to speculate that 'the ones called the ninjas' could be a threat to their plans and should be eliminated. At the same time, it appeared that the ninjas had not seen the last of Snakeweed.

* * *

On the way home, Miwa had no choice but to tell April that not only was she a ninja, but so were all of her younger brothers, even Donnie. April was surprised at first, but then thought it made perfect sense how they were able to fight so well.

They figured the next best move was to head home and tell their parents what happened, so they returned to the antique store, where Shen and Yoshi were waiting for them. When they walked through the door, Yoshi and Shen were overjoyed to see Donatello with them. Shen was so happy to have her son back unharmed that she walked up to him and pulled him into a tight hug. Yoshi smiled warmly at his third son's safety, and then he noticed that April was with them. Yoshi asked what she was doing there and what happened to her father, so the children began explaining the events of the night.

When the children told them that the Kraang escaped with Kirby, Shen and Yoshi knew they had no choice but to call the police and report him as missing. Miwa, Leo, Raph, and Mikey also changed out of their ninja attire before the police arrived. Unfortunately, when the kids told them the information about the Kraang, the police did not seem to believe it; not even when Miwa showed them her pictures of the Kraang and robot body, they thought it was fake. They figured that the kids were still in shock over what happened and that was why they were claiming aliens abducted Kirby.

They also allowed April to call her aunt to pick her up and let her stay with her. They at first worried about her knowledge about their ninja identity, but felt better when April swore to never tell anyone what she knew. While April called her aunt, Donnie decided to change out of his costume. After April was done with her conversation with her aunt, the Hamato teens decided to talk to her and make sure she was alright.

"Are you gonna be okay, April?" Mikey asked.

April sighed and answered, "I guess so. My aunt said I can stay with her as long as I want, but I'll be a lot better when I track down the creeps who took my dad."

Leo looked upset as he said, "I'm that the police weren't very helpful."

April laughed a bit and said, "I'm not surprised. The police don't usually take people all that seriously when they're told someone was kidnapped by aliens."

"That goes without saying," said Mikey, in disappointment.

"Don't worry, April," said Leo, "We won't rest until we find your dad."

Raph pounded his fists and added, "You can count on it."

April smiled at her friends and said, "Thanks. But it's not your fight."

Miwa put a hand on April's shoulder and said, "Yes, it is. It became our fight when they kidnapped our brother."

"Hey, where is Donnie?" April asked, noticing the absence of the third brother.

"Oh, he's in the bathroom," said Mikey.

Right on cue, Donnie arrived in the living room and said, "Not anymore. I'm done."

April turned around to talk to Donnie and was surprised at what she saw; in the doorway was her friend Donnie in pajamas... and wearing eye glasses. She had never seen him where glasses before, in fact she had no idea he wore glasses at all.

"Donnie?" April asked, "You wear glasses?"

Donnie scratched the back of his head and said, "Oh, yeah. But I usually wear contacts 'cause I like the way they look better."

April smiled and said, "Well, the glasses look good too."

Donnie blushed and asked, "Really?"

"Yeah," said April, "You should where them more often."

Donnie smiled at April's statement about his glasses and was about to reply when Shen came in and told them that April's would soon be arriving, so April should go downstairs to wait for her. April said her goodbyes to the siblings and then went down to wait for her aunt.

After she left, Donnie looked at himself in the mirror and said to himself, "Maybe wearing my glasses more isn't such a bad idea."

Before going to bed, Yoshi took Leo aside to talk with him.

"I am impressed, Leonardo," said Yoshi, "You proved to be an effective leader under the most difficult of circumstances."

"Thank you, dad," said Leo, and then he grinned and added, "And I think I know why you made me leader."

"Oh?" said Yoshi, "Why is that?"

Leo put a hand on his heart as he replied in a heroic tone of voice, "Because you sensed inside of me a great warrior spirit that will forge us into the heroes we are destined to become."

Yoshi was silent for a minute, making Leo assume he answered correctly, and then he replied, "No."

Leo was confused at the answer his father gave him and asked, "Then why did you make me leader?"

Yoshi looked Leo directly in the face and answered, "I made you leader because... you asked."

"That's it?" Leo asked in surprise, "But you seemed so certain you were right."

"As a leader, you will learn that there is no right or wrong, there are only choices," Yoshi explained to his eldest son.

"So you could've chosen any of us?" Leo asked, "Even Mikey?"

I'm response, Yoshi laughed and said, "No. That would have been wrong."

* * *

The next day, the teens were getting ready for school when Yoshi noticed something different about one of his sons.

"Donatello, I notice you are still wearing your glasses," he said.

Donnie smiled at his father eknowledging his eyewear and said, "Yeah, I thought I'd wear them to school today."

"Very well," said Yoshi, "But I would advise against wearing them during today's training session; eyeglasses and ninjutsu are not a very good combination."

"Okay," said Donnie, "That's fair."

Before anymore could be said, Shen turned on the TV to the morning news and the family received the shock of their lives when they saw a story about ninjas in New York. The reporter talked about neighbors reporting disturbances and then showed a picture of a ninja star with their family crest.

"Oh geez," said Miwa, cringing a bit.

Mikey beemed as he said, "Sweet! We're gonna be famous!"

"Technically, we're not because you were working behind the scenes," said Donnie.

Yoshi looked sternly at his children and said, "You must be more careful. If anything else went wrong, you could have been identified."

Raph just shrugged and said, "Relax, it's just one local news story. What's the worst that can happen?"

* * *

As it turned out, the story did not remain purely local news. The ninja story got picked up but a worldwide news station and traveled all the way to Japan, where was viewed by an old enemy; the Shredder.

When he saw the story, the Shredder recognized the crest and knew it could only mean one thing.

"So, my old enemy is alive in New York and is training ninjas of his own," said Shredder. He then put on his helmet and ordered his men, "Prepare my jet. I need to visit an old friend in New York."

Once his Foot Ninja were gone, the Shredder reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. It was a photo of himself holding a baby wrapped up in a red blanket.

"My son, at long last, you shall be avenged," Shredder said to the picture of his son.


	4. Enter the Fifth Ninja

**Enter the Fifth Ninja**

It had been a week since the battle against the Kraang and the Hamato teens still had not found any clues about their whereabouts or what had become of Kirby. April had been helping out as best she could, but there was only so much she could really do. Leo had to continue to act as leader because Yoshi still had not fully recovered from the injury he received from Snakeweed; he could walk better, but he still could not fight like he normally did. It was pretty rough on Donnie as well; ever since the Kraang's attempt at abducting him, his siblings had not allowed him to go with them on missions to look for the Kraang out fear of the Kraang attempting to kidnap again; Yoshi did not even let him go out without at least one of his siblings with him. While Donnie understood why they worried so much, he wished that they would not leave him out.

At the moment, Donnie was waiting at home for his siblings to return from their mission. Earlier that day, April had told him about a lab that she was sure that the Kraang would break into. Donnie had wanted to go with them, naturally, but his siblings said he could not out fear that the Kraang might recognize him and try to take him. Donnie tried arguing with them, but found he could not convince them to let him go.

Shen had just finished closing the antique shop and headed up to the upper level to join her son. Upon arrival, Shen noticed that he looked upset about something.

"What is the matter, Donatello?" she asked.

To answer her question, Donnie sighed and said, "I feel like I'm useless."

"What?" Shen asked, surprised at what her son just said. "Useless? Why would you think such a thing?"

"I guess it has a lot to do with the fact that the others keep leaving me out of missions," said Donnie. "I mean, I'm just as skilled a fighter as them."

Shen simply put a hand on his shoulder and told him, "Donatello, you know they didn't leave behind because they think you are weak. They just want to protect you because they love you and don't want to lose you."

"I know," said Donnie, "But still can't help but feel like I could be doing more. The problem is Leo, Miwa, Raph, Mikey, and even dad don't wanna let me."

Shen could tell her was feeling really bad about the whole situation, so she suggested to Donnie, "If you really feel strongly about this, why don't you talk to your father and siblings about it. I'm sure if you talk to them they will come around."

Donnie thought about the idea for a bit and then answered, "Maybe you're right."

Shen smiled and said, "That's the spirit. Now, come along to the lair; I believe your father and siblings are all there together by now."

"Cool," said Donnie, standing up from the couch, "That means I can talk to all of them at once. Hopefully they'll listen to me."

The two got ready to leave and Shen Donnie in an assuring voice, "I'm sure they will."

Together, Shen and Donnie left the shop through the back door and made their way down a manhole to the sewers. As the two walked through the tunnel, Donnie thought about what he wanted to say to them to get them to understand how he feels. They were just getting close to the entrance to the lair when they heard the sound of Yoshi yelling angrily.

"What's going on?" Donnie asked.

"I'm not sure," said Shen.

Curious as to what could have been the cause of Yoshi's angry yell, Shen and Donnie quickened their pace. Once they got past the turnstiles, Shen and Donnie saw Yoshi standing in front of Leo, Raph, Miwa, and Mikey looking sternly at them.

"Yoshi?" Shen called, getting her husband and children's attention, "What is going on?"

In response, Yoshi sighed and said, "Raphael let his anger get the best of him again."

Shen shook her head in disappointment at the news, while Donnie turned to his older brother and asked, "What did you do now?"

"Nothing!" Raph hissed.

Miwa looked over at Donnie and told him, "An old bald guy came onto the roof we were spying from and started yelling and insulting us, so Raph, in his infinite wisdom, decided to yell back. When he did that, the Kraang heard his shouting match and found us."

Donnie smacked his forehead and said, "Oh god, Raph! You blew their cover?"

Raph was about to retort when Yoshi stepped and said, "Not only that, but your siblings were caught... on video!"

"What!?" Donnie and Shen asked in shock.

Leo looked annoyed as he explained, "Yeah, that guy Raph was fighting recorded our fight with the Kraang on his phone. And now he might just sell it to someone or post it on the internet for the whole world to see. And it's all thanks to Raph."

"Shut it, Leo!" Raph snapped at his older brother, and then he turned to his father and said, "Dad, this guy was the angriest, nastiest guy you ever met."

"Except for you, that is," said Mikey.

Raph ignored what Mikey said and continued saying to his father, "You should've heard the insults this guy was throwing at us. They were so... insulting!"

"Oh, I did not realize he said mean things," said Yoshi, in a sarcastic tone, "Of course, you had no choice but to... jeopardize your mission!"

Raph slumped at his father's words, and then Mikey grinned at him and said, "Burn."

"Michelangelo," Shen scolded her youngest child.

"You are ninjas. You work in the shadows. In secret," Yoshi explained to his children, "This becomes difficult if there is proof of your ninja existence in high definition!"

"On the bright side, at least if it gets posted online no one will know it's us in that video," said Mikey.

"What if someone _does_ recognize us, Mikey?" Miwa asked, "They could reveal our true identities to the whole world. We can't take that risk."

"Dad, we know where this guy lives," Raph explained, "All we need to do is find and then shake him until the tape pops out."

"There's no tape, Raph," said Donnie, getting Raph's attention, "Video phones use flash memory-"

Before Donnie could say more, Raph glared at him and said, "It's an expression."

"Not a very good one," said Donnie.

"Hey!" Raph snapped, "Don't give me a lip, brainiac!"

"Raphael!" Yoshi shouted to get his second son's attention. And then he composed himself and said, "Anger is self-destructive."

"I always thought it was others-destructive," said Raph.

"Raphael!" Yoshi snapped, "Stand up."

Raph complied, looking defeated. Mikey teased his brother for being in trouble, only to earn a glared from said brother. Yoshi ordered his children into the dojo he had set up in the lair, saying that Raphael needed to learn his lesson. Donnie had wanted to talk his family, but he figured it might have to wait until after Raph was punished.

In the dojo, Yoshi had Raph dodge suction cup arrows that his brothers and sister would fire at him. He dodged them all with ease and even took a bow afterwards. Unfortunately for Raph, his lesson was not over.

"Again!" said Yoshi, "Only this time, Miwa, Leonardo, Donatello, and Michelangelo, insult Raphael."

Donnie's eyes widened as he asked, "Wait, you want us to insult him?"

"Yes," said Yoshi.

"And he can't fight back?" Donnie asked.

"No," said Yoshi.

Donnie smiled and said, "I'm feeling pretty good about this plan."

"You're not the only one, little brother," said Miwa, readying her bow, "I'm gonna have so much fun with this."

"Hajime!" said Yoshi, telling them to start.

The four circled Raph, bows at the ready, while Raph prepared to dodge their arrows. He thought he was prepared for anything, but he would quickly be proven wrong.

Mikey laughed and said, "You move like a bloated buffalo!" And then he released his arrow.

Raph dodged Mikey's arrow, and then glared at him and snapped, "I do not!"

"And you're always whining," said Leo, preparing his bow, "Poor me. Nobody understands me."

"Well, you don't understand me!" said Raph, who got hit in the back by Leo's arrow. The others laughed at his expense while Miwa decided to take her turn.

"And you can never take criticism," she said, "Even when it's meant to be constructive."

"That's not true!" Raph snapped. Right after he said that, Miwa's arrow hit him square in the face.

Next was Donnie's turn. He was having a little trouble at first, and then he got his bow ready and said, "And you don't keep your back straight when doing omote-gote-gyaku!" he released his arrow and it got stuck to Raph's back, and then he released another arrow and added, "And you're ugly!"

Donnie laughed at the last insult. The four continued to insult and taunt Raph while shooting arrows at him until he fell to the floor. Once they were finished, Raph looked a lot like a porcupine.

Mikey sighed happily and said, "I wish this moment could last forever."

"You know what, forget this!" Raph yelled, "This is stupid!"

Raph got up and walked towards their father while Mikey whined, "Aw! It didn't!"

Raph looked up at his Yoshi, who explained to him, "Minicusasion is the ability to endure insults with patients and humility. You cannot be a true ninja until you master it."

Mikey laughed a little when two arrows fell off of Raph's head, and Raph got ready to punch him until Yoshi asked, "Understood?"

"Hai, father," said Raph.

Yoshi then turned his attention to all of his children and said, "You must get that video back." he turned his attention particularly Raph as he added, "Using reason, not force."

"Okay," said Donnie, "I'll go get my gear."

He was about to gear up when Raph stopped him and said, "Whoa, whoa, whoa. You're not coming with us."

Donnie rolled his eyes and said, "We're just going to get a video back from a jerk. It's not like the Kraang will be there waiting for us."

"What if they do show up and recognize you?" Leo asked, "We can't risk that."

"It'll be fine, Leo," said Donnie, "Between the mask and the rest of the outfit, there's no way they will recognize me if they show up."

Leo looked Donnie right in the eyes and said, "It's too dangerous. They almost took you away before; I don't want that to happen again."

"It won't," said Donnie, "Please, let me go with you. I can help."

Miwa walked up to her brother and said, "You're right, it won't happen, because you're staying home where it's safe."

Donnie sighed and said, "Guys, I understand that you wanna protect me, but forcing me to stay home isn't really doing me any favors. To be honest, I've been feeling kinda left out."

The family stayed silent for a moment. And then Yoshi put a hand on his third son's shoulder and told him, "I am sorry, Donatello. I know you don't like being left out. But I also know that the Kraang may still be after you. And if they are, they may stop at nothing to find you. I'm afraid home, school, and the lair are the only safe places for you for now."

"But, dad-" Donnie began.

"I am sorry, my son, that is my final word," said Yoshi.

Before Donnie could reply, his father and siblings left the dojo. Donnie stood where he was, frozen like a statue in shock.

Shen put a hand on Donnie's shoulder and told him, "Come along, Donatello. Let's go home. We'll try to talk to them again tomorrow."

"You go ahead, mom," said Donnie, "I'd like to stay here a little bit longer."

"Okay," said Shen, removing her hand from her son's shoulder, "But don't stay too late."

"Okay," said Donnie.

With that, Shen left the dojo to return home with Yoshi. After she was gone, Donnie grabbed his collapsible bo staff to hide in his back pocket and left the dojo. He then made his way out of the lair and through the tunnels back up to the surface. He walked over to his bike, unlocked the chain and got on to ride.

Before leaving, Donnie looked at the shop and said, "Forgive me, my family." And with that, Donnie road through the streets to find the man who recorded his siblings; he remembered the address of the lab and was sure he could find a faster way there and could easily find the man. Since this was not a ninja mission, per-say, he felt that his casual look would be enough.

* * *

Upon arriving at the lab April told him about, Donnie found an apartment building across the street. He was about to go looking around for the man that tapped his siblings when he heard a man's voice coming out of the building.

"I swear on my mother's grave, these kids were crazy!" said a man who fit the description his sister gave him earlier, "They were dressed in black and they knew Kung Fu! They were fighting these guys with laser guns like they were some kind of super heroes! You can't tell me that's not worth something!"

Donnie rolled his eyes at the 'Kung Fu' statement, then got off his bike and walked over to the man. He tapped the man's shoulder and got his attention.

"I'll call you back," the man said to his contact. He then hung up the phone and said, "Whadya you want, four-eyes?"

Donnie's eye twitched a little as he thought to himself ' _I see Raph wasn't exaggerating about this guy._ ' But never the less, Donnie kept his composure and talked peacefully with the man.

Donnie laughed nervously and said, "This is really embarrassing, but I believe you recorded some people on your roof earlier this evening."

"Maybe I did, and maybe I didn't," the man rudely said to Donnie, "What's it to you?"

"Well, the thing is, they were friends of mine and they were shooting a scene for a movie that we're entering in a film contest," Donnie lied, "It's an action about a secret ninja alliance saving the world from alien invaders."

Donnie hoped that the man would buy that. Unfortunately, the man looked unconvinced.

"You think I'm stupid or something?" he asked, "If your friends were shooting a movie scene, how come I didn't see any cameras? And those were definitely real lasers that almost killed me."

Donnie mentally cursed himself for not coming up with a better story. He then started wracking his brain for another story, but could think of nothing that the man would believe. Finally, he realized that he had no choice but to tell the truth, but be vague so as to not reveal too much.

"Okay, I'm gonna level with you here," he began, "When you recorded my friends fight earlier with your phone, you put their safety at risk. I just want that video deleted so that they're not at risk of being recognized on the internet by people they know. So, you think you could do that for me?"

The man seemed to be contemplating the idea. Donnie waited patiently for his answer, finally, the man said, "What's in it for me?"

Donnie looked surprised and asked, "Excuse me?"

"Well, I figure I've got you over a barrel so you've got to make it worth my while," said the man.

' _You've gotta be kidding me,_ ' Donnie thought to himself. He sighed in annoyance and said, "Okay, what do you want?"

The man thought for a second and then said, "A couple thousand bucks oughta cover it."

 _'Seriously? Do I look like I have that kind of money?'_ Donnie thought to himself. He was about to say something back, when he heard a voice yell, "Are you seriously trying to extort money from him?!"

Donnie turned around and froze at the sight of his siblings, and Raph looked angry. Raph stormed over to Donnie and the man, ignoring his siblings pleads to calm down.

Donnie walked up to Raph and said, "I can explain."

Raph shoved Donnie out of the way and said, "I'll deal with _you_ later." And then he walked over to the man and yelled, "I wasn't gonna hurt you at first, but now I think I've changed my mind."

Raph grabbed the man and threw him to the ground. He then stood over him with his fist raised and yelled, "You had better give me that phone, or so help me, I'll kick your hairy butt all the way to New Jersey!"

"Guys, I've got this," said Donnie, attempting to make peace.

Miwa got in Donnie's face and snapped, " _You_ were not supposed to be here!"

Mikey got in between his brother and sister and said, "Hey, lay off him. He was just trying to help."

While the others were fighting with each other, Leo spotted something and yelled, "Guys, the Kraang!"

Everyone looked ahead and saw the Kraang's van driving straight towards them with the headlights on. Miwa tackled Donnie and Mikey out of the way, but Raph and the man were frozen. Leo saw this and pushed them out of the way just in time to avoid the van. After the van left, the teens saw a truck driving their way with Kraang inside.

"Let's not let them get away," said Miwa.

"Couldn't have said it better myself," said Leo.

"Agreed," said Raph, and then he picked up an oil drum and threw it at the truck. The result was that the driver lost control of the vehicle and crashed into a wall.

Raph smiled proudly at his work and crossed his arms over his chest as he said, "Well, that was easy."

Leo, Miwa, and Mikey looked to examine Raph handy work, while Donnie crawled on the ground as if trying to find something. Mikey noticed this and asked, "What'cha doing done there, D?"

"I lost my glasses when we had to dive to avoid that van," said Donnie, "Can one of you give me a hand? I can't see very well."

"Sure thing," said Mikey. He looked on the ground until he finally found his brother's missing eye wear. "Oh, found 'em."

"Thanks," said Donnie, taking his glasses back and putting them on. His eyes widened in shock when he saw the back of the truck open and three Kraang come out armed with lasers.

"I think you spoke too soon when you said that was easy, Red!" Donnie screamed as he dodged laser fire.

The others followed suit and scrambled in different directions. They then got their weapons ready and charged into battle. Donnie tried to join them, but Leo told him to hang back.

During the fight, Donnie, saw the man trying to sneak away with his phone, which had the video in it. Seeing this as a chance to prove himself, Donnie attempted to sneak past the fighting and get to the man. Unfortunately, the man got knocked into the back of the truck, which meant Donnie would have to climb in after him to get the phone. Unfortunately, a Kraang saw him and grabbed him.

"The one known as Donatello Kurama will come with Kraang to the place that Kraang will take him," said the Kraang, "Kraang has use of the one known as Donatello Kurama."

"I'm not going anywhere with you guys!" Donnie snapped, and then hit the Kraang with his staff, forcing it to release him.

He tried to run after the man with the phone, but another Kraang stopped him and said, "Kraang was not asking, Kraang was telling."

While Donnie was trying to fight off the Kraang, Raph stormed over to the truck and left Leo to fight a Kraang by himself. Raph climbed inside the van, got in the man's face and said, in the threatening voice, "You give me that phone right now!"

The man backed away in fear and held his phone protectively. He then looked past Raph as if seeing something. Raph turned around at the sound of shouting and saw three Kraang climb in, one of whom was holding Donnie tightly by his arm and pulling him inside. The other two Kraang that were left got into the front of the truck, started, and drove away as fast as they could, leaving the three remaining ninjas to watch them in surprise. That is until Leo pointed out something important to Miwa and Mikey.

"Guys, Kurogane and Donatello are in the truck!" he said, and they all ran as fast as they could to catch up.

Inside the truck, Raph and Donnie were fighting the Kraang as the bald man sat and watched them. Once Raph had defeated enough of them, he decided that it would be a good time to escape.

Raph turned to the man, held out his hand, and said, "Let's get of here!"

The man simply glared at him and said, "Forget it! I'm sick of you brats! In fact, I might just sell my video of you to these guys."

Donnie glared and yelled, "Really?! These guys could kill you before they even consider giving you anything!" Right after Donnie yelled that, he and Raph heard Mikey call out to them.

"You guys!" he called. Raph and Donnie looked out of the truck and saw Leo, Miwa, and Mikey chasing the truck and Mikey yelled again, "Get out of there!"

"I'll just be a sec!" said Raph, and then he picked Donnie up and yelled, "Catch!"

"Wait! Wait! Think about this for a minute!" Donnie started saying, but Raph ignored Donnie and threw him out of the truck.

Donnie screamed and shut his eyes as he waited for impact. Luckily, Leo stood his ground and caught him just in time. Raph, meanwhile, turned his attention back to the man with the video phone.

"Listen, jerk face," Raph yelled, grabbing him by the arm, "We are **not** brats and these guys are **bad news**! I may not like you, but that doesn't mean I want you dead!"

"How do I know you're not just making that stuff up?" the man asked.

Raph was about respond when a Kraang grabbed him from behind and dragged him towards the still open back of the truck. They then threw him out and he rolled right into Miwa and Mikey, causing them all to tumble and fall. As the truck drove away, the teens could have sworn they heard the man with the video phone taunting them.

After Leo and Donnie caught up to them, Miwa, Mikey, and Raph got up and dusted themselves off. Mickey told Leo that the Kraang escaped with the man with the video phone, and Leo glared at Raph.

"Nice going, Raph," said Leo.

"What did I do?" Raph asked, not understanding how what happened was his fault.

"What did you do?" Leo said, flabbergasted, "You left the rest in the middle of the fight to yell at somebody! We could've stopped them, but thanks to your temper, the guy with the tape..."

Donnie raised a finger and corrected Leo, "Again, flash memory..."

Leo glared at Donnie and said, "Not now!" he then turned back to Raph and said, "... is in the hands of the Kraang! How are we supposed to find them?"

While Leo scolded Raph, Donnie noticed something on the ground. Upon closer inspection, he found that it was fluid from the truck. He looked ahead and saw a trail of fluid leading in the same direction the truck drove away.

"Guys, the truck's leaking," said Donnie.

This news made Miwa smile and say, "Great. We can follow it to their hideout."

"And then we bash some bots," said Raph. He then noticed his siblings giving him weird looks, "What?"

" _We_ are going to bash some bots," said Leo, " _You_ are taking Donnie home and waiting for us there."

"What?" both Donnie and Raph said.

Leo sighed and explained, "Raph, you need to control your temper. Until then, We just can't trust you." He then turned to Donnie and said, "And, Donnie, you weren't even supposed to be here in the first place."

"You've gotta be kidding me," said Raph. He then turned to his youngest brother and older sister and asked, "Miwa, Mikey, are we really gonna let Leo power trip us like this?"

"I think he's right, Raph. Sorry," said Miwa, then she looked to Donnie and added, "About both of you."

Donnie stepped forward and said, "I'm sorry that this happened. It won't happen again. Please, just let me help."

"Donnie, the Kraang almost took you again," said Miwa, "Don't you see? This incident only proves that it's too dangerous for you."

"Not any more than it is for _you_!" Donnie snapped, "They only try to kidnap me, they actually try to _kill_ you!"

Leo and Miwa looked sternly at their brother and Leo said, "We'll talk about this later."

Miwa, Leo, and Mikey turned to follow the trail to the Kraang's hideout. Before leaving, Mikey turned back to his other two brothers and said, "Sorry, guys."

As Miwa, Leo, and Mikey walked away into the night, Donnie watched them and felt sad, and Raph growled in anger and threw his sais to the ground. After that, he picked them up and started to walk back home with Donnie following close behind, stopping only to collect his bike.

* * *

Upon their arrival home, Raph went straight to his and Leo's shared bedroom and plopped down onto his bed, while Donnie was scolded by their parents for sneaking away to join his siblings on the mission.

While he was in his room, Raph started ranting about what happened that night to his pet turtle, Spike.

"So what if I have a temper? I'm still the best fighter we've got. In fact, If anything, my anger makes me a better fighter. You understand me, right?" Raph said to his pet. He then sat up and said to Spike, "Chew on your leaf if you understand me."

Upon command, Spike took a bite out of the lettuce leaf that Raph had given him earlier. Raph smiled as he watched his pet chew and said, "I thought so."

"I understand you too," said a familiar voice. Raph jumped at the sound and looked up to see Yoshi standing in the doorway.

Raph calmed down and said, "Seriously, you've gotta knock or something."

Yoshi sat down next to Raph and said, "Raphael, let me tell you a story."

"Dad, I'm not in the mood for a story," said Raph.

Yoshi turned to the turtle and said, "Spike, chew on your leaf if you are in the mood for a story." on command, Spike took a bite out of the leaf and chewed it. Yoshi then turned back to his second son and said, "Very well. When I was a young man, I fell in love with a woman..."

"Oh, look at the time. Is it that late? I better get ready for bed," said Raph, trying to excuse himself from the story.

"Nice try, Raphael. You and I both know that tomorrow is Sunday," said Yoshi, forcing Raph to pay attention to the story. He then cleared his throat and continued, "Her name was Tang Shen, your mother. But I was not the only man who loved her, there was another man competing for her attention, Oroku Saki."

"The Shredder," Raph hissed, recalling everything he had heard about his biological father.

Yoshi nodded his head and continued the story, "One day, he insulted me in front of her. He called me many things. I felt I could not let those insults go unanswered, so I attacked him. He left home that very day and over time our rivalry festered into hatred, until one day he sought to finish me. And you know the rest. I lost my temper and my father paid the price with his life."

By the end of the story, Yoshi's face was filled with guilt and Raph's was filled with shock.

Raph put his hand on his father's shoulder and said, "Dad, it wasn't your fault. Shredder insulted you, you didn't have a choice. Plus, it sounds like he was never right in the head to begin with."

Yoshi looked at his son and said, "You may be right about his lack of sanity, but that does not change the fact that I was the one who made his words into weapons. I could have chosen to ignore his insults and let his words wash over me, like a river over stone, but instead, I let him anger me." He looked Raph right in the eye and said, "That's the choice _I_ made. What choice will _you_ make?"

With that, Yoshi stood up and left the room, leaving Raph think about what his father had told him.

* * *

In the living room, Donnie was working on his computer and thinking about what happened earlier. He suddenly felt a hand touch his shoulder and looked up to see his mother.

"I'm sorry I lied, mom," said Donnie, "But I just couldn't stand by and do nothing while my family's safety was at stake."

"I know," said Shen, "You're father always said you had my spirit. I was never one to stand by and do nothing either; especially when those I love were involved."

Donnie smiled at his mother's words and said, "Thanks."

"However, I do not approve of you knowingly putting yourself in danger just to prove yourself," said Shen.

"The others do the same to protect the city," said Donnie, "I wanna to help them do that. I wanna be a part of the team. To be honest, I've been feeling smothered, uncomfortable, helpless and... I haven't even had a say in anything. It's like I don't even matter."

"I can't believe we never realized that before," said a familiar voice. Shen and Donnie turned around and saw Raph and Yoshi. Raph was the one who spoke first, "We just wanted to keep you safe, we didn't realize we were hurting you. Sorry man."

"I'm a little surprised myself," said Yoshi, "I'm master ninja as well as your father and even I did not realize that we made you feel this way. And for that I am sorry."

Raph walked up to Donnie and said, "I'm going to go help our brothers and sister, and I'm gonna need some help. You feel like joining the fight?"

Donnie's face lit up and he smiled as he said, "Yes."

"Great," said Raph, "Now go put in your contacts and come with me to the lair to gear up."

"You got it, big bro," said Donnie, then he closed his laptop, stood up, and went to the bathroom to put in his contacts.

After Donnie put in his contacts, he and Raph left the house to go underground to the ninja lair so he could get his ninja gear. After the boys were gone, Yoshi and Shen decided to express their concerns to one another.

"I must confess, I have mixed feelings about letting him go," said Yoshi.

"As do I, my love," said Shen, "But I also have the same feeling when I allow Miwa, Leonardo, Raphael, and Michelangelo to go."

"Me too," said Yoshi, "But I also know that I do not have much of a choice with me still being too injured to fight with them."

"Until then, we will just have to trust them to come home safely," said Shen, "Also remember, it was you who trained them."

That was enough to comfort Yoshi and assure him that his children would come back safe and sound.

* * *

Out in the city, Raph and Donnie had followed the trail of truck fluid to a warehouse. Donnie was now dressed in a ninja outfit that was nearly identical to his family's, except it had purple lining, a purple mask, and a leather holder for his bo staff.

"Say, bro," said Raph, "Have you decided what you want to call yourself."

"Huh?" Donnie asked.

"Remember? While we're in ninja mode, we can't use our real names because someone could identify us later," Raph explained, "So we all use code names."

"Oh, right," said Donnie, remembering what his father said about anonymity. He started thinking about what to call himself, then he spoke up, "How about Tetsuo?"

Raph thought it over for a second, and then said, "Good one. Tetsuo it is. And I go by Kurogane."

"Yeah, I remembered that," said Donnie, "Now let's do this."

"Thought you'd never say that," said Raph, with a grin.

Together, Donnie and Raph climbed in through an open window and started sneaking around the warehouse looking for their siblings. Suddenly, they heard footsteps and quickly hid. They saw two Kraang droids pass by and Raph signaled for Donnie to sneak up and attack. Donnie nodded and the two unsheathed their weapons and attacked the Kraang.

After taking out the two droids, Raph and Donnie smiled proudly at their handiwork until they heard a voice say, "It is another one of the ones called 'the ninjas', and he has brought another one called 'a ninja'!"

Donnie and Raph turned around and saw five more Kraang droids standing behind them with guns in their hands. The Kraang fired and the two ninjas dodged to avoid being shot by the lasers, and then they used their ninja skills to take the droids down. Raph stabbed them multiple times with his sai while Donnie used his staff to take them down as well as the occasional use of the hidden blade.

The fight lasted until a Kraang without a robot body came scurrying in and screaming about something. This made the other Kraang bail before the fight could go any further.

Donnie raised an eyebrow and asked, "What was that about?"

"Who cares?" said Raph, laughing hysterically "It's funny watching them runaway scared!"

"I'm serious," said Donnie, "If something scared them, it was probably something dangerous and powerful. Like a mutant."

Before Raph could reply, they both heard the familiar screams of their brothers and sister. Knowing that they could be in danger, Raph and Donnie ran quickly in the direction came from. They kept following the screams until they found a giant black spider-like mutant hovering over a hole in the floor. It took all of Donnie's will power not to scream at the sight of it.

After the mutant jumped into the hole, Raph and Donnie heard screams coming from below that could only belong to their siblings. They rushed towards the hole and looked down to see what was happening and saw the mutant standing in front of their brothers and sister.

"Playtime's over, brats!" said the mutant, in a voice that was familiar to Raph and Donnie, the phone guy.

The spider spat acid at the trio and was about to advance on them when Raph said, "Wow, I didn't think this guy could get any uglier. Did you, Tetsuo?"

Donnie shrugged and said, "Can't say I did."

Leo, Miwa, and Mikey smiled and called, "Kurogane!"

Raph and Donnie jumped down to the spider's level and looked at him determinedly. This mutant messed with their family, so now he was going to pay. It was then that Leo was able to get a good look at Raph's partner and his eyes widened in shock.

"What're _you_ do here?" he asked, then turned to Raph and asked, "What is _he_ doing here?"

"I have a name. And it's Tetsuo," said Donnie, "And what I'm doing here is helping Kurogane here save you guys."

"Thanks," said Mikey, "Whoever you are."

Leo was about to say something back to Mikey when Miwa pushed him aside and said, "I don't know about Ryu, but I personally think that you've been punished long enough. Care to join the fight?"

Raph smiled and said, "You even have to ask?"

The spider mutant turned around to face Raphael and Donnie, smiled, and said, "Hey look, it's the kung-fu kid with the salad tongs. And he brought a friend with him. Nice stick by the way."

"Hey look, it's the stupid loud mouth who's about to get his butt kicked," said Raph.

"Who also happens to not know that there's a difference between Chinese and Japanese fighting styles," Donnie added.

Right after Donnie said that, the Spider mutant rolled around and circled Leo, Miwa, and Mikey while spitting acid on the floor. The acid burned through the floor and made a second hole, which Leo, Miwa, and Mikey fell through. Once they landed and rubbed their heads, Leo looked down and saw that the floor they were standing on was glass and underneath was mutagen.

Leo's eyes widened in shock as he said, "Uh team, let's not fall through this floor. Okay?"

Back on the second floor, the spider mutant looked over at Raph and Donnie and said, "Dance for me, brats!"

He then spat acid at them multiple times, and the two ninjas jumped back to avoid being hit. They wound up dropping their weapons in the process, but they managed to get some distance between themselves and the mutant.

Raph breathed heavily and said, "That is one dangerous bug."

"Actually, spiders aren't technically bugs, they're arachnids," Donnie corrected his brother, "The difference between the two is..."

"Not now!" Raph snapped.

The ninjas turned their attention back to the spider mutant, who said to them, "Watch me turned your friends into kung-pao. I'll serve 'em up with your salad tongs."

He then spat out a web and used it to slide down the hole in the floor.

"No!" Donnie screamed as he and Raphael picked up their weapons and ran after the spider.

The two slide down the web themselves after the spider mutant. Once he got the okay from Donnie, Raph used his said to cut the web and make the spider mutant fall hard to the floor; Donnie could have sworn he heard a fart sound when the spider landed face fist.

Raph and Donnie landed on his back and jumped off and stood in front of him. The spider mutant stood up and roared angrily at them. They glared at him and got into fighting stances.

The spider grinned at them and started taunting them, "Oh look, the little babies think they can take me. How cute. You think you could beat me when your friends couldn't? What a laugh."

"Remember what sensei said," Donnie whispered to Raph.

Raph took a deep breath and tuned out the spider's words. He also whispered to himself, "Like a river over stone."

Before the spider could say anymore, Raph and Donnie struck him multiple times with their weapons. At one point, he tried to grab them with his long spider led, but Raph caught one with his sais. The spider tried to spit acid at them, but Donnie blocked the attack by using the spider mutant's leg. The spider hissed in pain and backed up a bit.

He then glared at them and said, "That's some kung-fu, kids."

Right on cue, Leo, Miwa, and Mikey jumped in and stood behind Raph and Donnie. The two smirked as Raph said, "We're not 'kung-fu kid's, we're ninja warriors."

After Raph said that, all five kids charged at the spider mutant and attacked him. They all dealt multiple attacks, which knocked him back and caused him to drop his phone.

Donnie saw the phone and asked Raph, "Care to do the honors, Kurogane?"

Raph grinned and said, "With pleasure." And then he lifted his right foot high and brought it down hard on the phone, crushing it.

The spider mutant saw that and screamed, "My phone!" he then stood up and glared at the ninjas as he said, "You're gonna regret this."

He then shot out more webs and climbed back up. The ninjas climbed up and followed close behind. They followed him all the way to the roof and watched as he jumped from roof to roof until he was out of sight.

Donnie smiled under his mask and commented, "I know a nice black widow that would be great for him."

Mikey laughed a little at the comment and said, "Good one, dude. I should tell that one to my other brother."

At that line, Donnie rolled his eyes, pulled down his facial mask, and said, "Mikey, it's me."

Mikey's eyes widened in realization and he said, "Donnie?!"

"Yeah," said Donnie, "But call me Tetsuo when we're in the field."

"Do mom and dad know you're here?" Mikey asked him.

"They let me go with Raph," Donnie said.

After Donnie answered the question, Leo stepped in and to him and Raph, "Great job you two. I just wanted to say..."

Before Leo could finish, Raph shook his head and said, "You don't have to apologize to me."

Leo smiled at Raph and said, "I wasn't going to."

"Oh," Raph replied, then he looked back at Leo and said, "You do have to apologize to Donnie though. So do Mikey and Miwa."

The three looked confused and Miwa asked, "What for?"

Raph nudged Donnie in the arm and Donnie stepped forward and told them, "Being overprotective. It made me feel uncomfortable. I wanted to tell you guys before, but you were always too busy hunting Kraang."

The let that sink in for a moment, and then Mikey spoke, "Sorry, D."

Next, Miwa said, "I had no idea we were hurting you. I'm sorry, too."

Finally, Leo told Donnie, "Man, sorry, Donnie. I honestly just wanted to protect you."

Donnie smiled at his siblings and said, "It's okay. I know you meant well."

Raph them recommended something and told his siblings, "Turns out, Donnie was right about his ninja outfit. The Kraang took one look at him and assumed he was a different kid."

Leo smiled at the news and said, "Well, then in that case, we've got some changes to make." He walked up to his second brother and said, "Since you've shown great skill in battle and the Kraang don't recognize you like this, I think it would be fitting to make you an official member of the team."

Donnie's face lit up and he asked, "Do you mean it?"

"Sure," said Leo, "What do you say?"

"Yes!" said Donnie, still smiling brightly, "I will join the team!"

Leo smiled and said, "Then welcome aboard, Tetsuo."

With that, the five ninjas cheered for their newest member. Donnie was happy to finally be a part of the team, and his siblings were happy to have their brother join them.


	5. Never Meet Your Idols

**Author's Note:** To the guest reviewer from the previous chapter, Donnie is a few minutes older than Mikey.

* * *

 **Never Meet Your Idols**

In the dark, lone muscular male ninja was sitting in a meditative like position. His outfit was red with no sleeves and spikes on the shoulders, and on his head was a mask that covered his whole head and face except for his eyes. While he made hand signs, a ninja in black snuck up on him quietly with his sword drawn. The ninja in black jumped at the big ninja in red and attempted to strike him, but the red ninja sensed him and blocked him in time to send him flying. Others joined in, but they were all easily defeated by the ninja in red.

Suddenly, the sliding door of the dojo opened to reveal a dark skinned man with black hair. Along with him was a familiar man wearing a helmet with horns, the Shredder.

The ninja in red bowed down on one knee and said, "Master Shredder."

"I trust that my greatest pupil is using their time wisely," said Shredder.

"I have assembled and army of ninjas," said the ninja in red, "The Foot Clan await your orders."

"Excellent," said Shredder, "Because I have discovered an old enemy in New York. Hamato Yoshi."

After Shredder said the name "Hamato Yoshi" the dark skinned man threw a piece of paper at the red ninja's feet. It was a picture of Yoshi and the Shredder from years ago.

The ninja in red looked shocked as he asked, "Hamato Yoshi alive?"

"And he is training ninjas of his own in New York," said Shredder, "It is also possible that Tang Shen is alive as well along with the twins, Miwa and Leonardo. Finally, I can finish what I started all those years ago. I want Shen and her children found and Hamato Yoshi and his pupils wiped out."

"I will not fail you, Master," said the ninja in red.

"I know," said Shredder, "But to be certain, you will work alongside Xever."

In response, the dark skinned man, Xever, spun his pocket knife around and them grinned. The ninja in red did not look pleased with the idea at all.

The ninja in red stood up and snapped, "I don't need any help! Especially from this, street rat!"

Never smirked and said, "Are you sure, Rich Boy?"

The ninja in red got in Xever's face and snapped, "Anytime you wanna test me...!"

"I am not interested in your petty rivalry!" yelled Shredder, "Xever is familiar with the dark underbelly of the city. You will work together."

The ninja in red wanted to argue, but knew he could not. So instead he simply said, "Don't worry, we will find and destroy Hamato Yoshi and his disciples. We will also track down Tang Shen and her children."

"Good," said Shredder.

Xever laughed a little about his new partner being forced to work with him. The ninja in red angrily stormed out of the dojo, stomping on and already down ninja on the way.

* * *

Meanwhile in New York city, five certain teens were having fun goofing around and jumping from roof to roof. They had just finished their patrol of the city and decided to have some fun while at the same time practicing their ninja skills.

At a particularly wide gap between two buildings, they each decided to take turns jumping across and see who could do better stunts. Donnie, Mikey, Leo, and Miwa all did very impressive flips across the building, but Raph decided to charge ahead and ram into his siblings, resulting in them being knocked over like bowling pins.

His siblings glared at him and Leo and Miwa got ready to beat him up until they heard Mikey scream, "No way! How did I not hear about this?!"

His siblings grabbed their weapons and prepared for and attacked. "What is it, Mikey?" Leo asked.

Mikey had a shocked expression as he pointed ahead and said, "Check it out."

Miwa, Leo, Raph, and Donnie looked where their youngest brother was pointing and saw a billboard displaying an ad about a brunette man in a martial arts pose. They then looked annoyed because they recognized him as their baby brother's idol, Chris Bradford.

"Are you serious?" Raph asked in an annoyed tone.

Mikey grinned with excitement and said, "Heck yeah, I'm serious! He's awesome!"

"He doesn't look that awesome to me," said Miwa.

"Ah, you wouldn't understand," Mikey said with a shrug. And then he smiled happily and added, "I can't wait to meet him! We have so much in common!"

Mikey then struck a pose identical to the one Chris Bradford was doing on the billboard. His siblings looked even more annoyed with their brother for doing that.

"What if you stop standing like that?" Donnie asked.

Mikey's smile fell and he answered, "We'd have a little less in common." he then beamed once again and said, "But still a lot! We're already online friends. And since he's in town for a martial arts expo, we can finally meet and become friends in real life! Maybe he'll show me his secret kata, the Death Dragon! And I'll show him my secret kata, the Secret Kata!"

"Catchy," said Donnie, sarcastically.

Mikey did not seem to pick up on the sarcasm because the next thing he said was, "Check this out." He then did a few random body movements that did not look at all like martial arts. When finished, Mikey whispered to his siblings, "Don't tell anyone you saw that."

"We weren't planning to," Leo whispered back.

Suddenly, several ninjas in black jumped out of nowhere and surrounded the siblings. The new ninjas unsheathed their weapons and the Hamato teens did the same as they all prepared for an attack.

"Ninjas in New York?" Donnie asked out loud, "Other than us?"

Both teams examined each other for a moment, and then the new ninjas attacked. One of them started by throwing a shuriken at Donnie, who blocked it with his staff. And then, like lightning, the ninjas charged forward and started attacking the teens left and right. Raph dealt several devastating blows with the hilts of his sai, and Donnie did the same with his staff. Miwa blocked many shuriken with her tessen, struck her opponents with it, and even occasionally threw it like a disk. Leo used his swords and Mikey his nun chucks.

At one point, Raph caught Leo smiling and asked while blocking attacks, "Why are you so happy?"

"It's just nice to finally be fighting people," said Leo, while blocking attacks, "Instead of aliens, robots, or mutant monsters."

After all of the ninjas were defeated, the muscular ninja in red jumped in and faced the teens with a serious looked on his face. He punched Leo and knocked him back and then dealt a roundhouse kick to Raph, who tried to block but wound up being knocked back anyway. Miwa threw her tessen at him, but he caught it easily and threw the weapon away. He then charged forward to attack her, Donnie tried to defend her with his staff, but the red ninja grabbed it and used it to smack both Donnie and Miwa into a nearby wall. Finally, Mikey converted his nun chucks into a kasurigama attempted to use the chain to attack the ninja with the bladed end. Unfortunately, the ninja caught the chain and pulled Mikey forward.

As he looked closely at Mikey, the ninja said, "Are there more of you, or is it just you kids?"

Mikey did not answer; he only back flipped away from him. They had a bit of a tug-a-war battle with the chain until Leo sliced the chain with his sword, forced the red ninja to stumble backward. He glared as the teens retrieved their fallen weapons and got into defensive stances. They would have fought more, had it not been for the sirens of the police cars that were coming their way. Not wanting to be caught by the police, both ninja teams fled the scene and headed for their own secret lairs.

* * *

After returning home from their evening patrol, Leo went to the kitchen and told Yoshi all about what had happened.

"Their leader was crazy good!" said Leo, "And by that I mean he was good and seemed a little crazy. Besides, he had all these guys with him. It wasn't a fair fight."

"What do you mean a ' _fair fight_ '?" Yoshi asked out of curiosity.

"You know, 'a fair fight' where either side could win," said Leo, sounding like his answer should be obvious.

"So a fair fight is a fight you could lose?" Yoshi asked, walking over to his eldest son.

"Yes. I mean no. That's not quite what I said," Leo tried to explain.

"So, you don't want to assure your team's victory?" Yoshi asked.

"I think you might be misunderstanding me," said Leo.

While Leo tried to explain what he meant by 'fair fight' Yoshi knocked him to the floor and pinned him down. Leo tried to get his father off of him while at the same time trying to figure out what he was trying to prove.

"Was that fair?" Yoshi asked.

"No," said Leo.

"Did I win?" Yoshi asked.

"I see your point," said Leo.

Yoshi then got off of Leo and helped him back to his feet. And then he told him, "Seek victory not fairness."

* * *

Meanwhile in the living room, Shen had just finished treating her children's injuries and they were all relaxing and hanging out with April, who came over to hang out with them. Mikey was currently into a magazine with Chris Bradford on the cover.

Mikey had a huge smile on his face as he said, "Man, I can't wait to meet Chris Bradford in person. He's so awesome. I bet we could be great friends."

Mikey chomped on the magazine a couple of times and then fell on his back laughing. April looked confused about what Mikey was doing while Miwa, Raph, and Donnie looked annoyed.

"Is he alright?" April asked.

"He's alright. He always gets like this when it comes to Chris Bradford," said Miwa.

"Really?" April asked.

"Yup," said Donnie while he typed on his laptop.

"He's been a fan of this guy for a long time now," said Raph, in an annoyed tone of voice while he did pushups on the floor. "For some reason he seems to think the guy's the greatest thing since sliced bread."

Mikey shot up and said, "What do mean 'for some reason'? Chris Bradford is a martial arts super star and owns a chain of dojos all over the country!"

Miwa sat back in the couch and said, "Seems like a show off to me."

Mikey frowned at his sister's comment and said, "Like you would know anything about him."

"Need I remind you, Mikey, that you don't actually know him either," said Donnie, "How can you be sure that you two will even get along?"

Mikey smiled and said, "I'm sure we'll get along. We're already online friends."

"Really?" April asked in surprise.

Mikey smiled proudly and said, "You betcha. I'll show you." He then turned to his older twin and asked, "Donnie, can I see your laptop for a minute?"

"Sure. Just a second," said Donnie, who changed his wallpaper from a picture of April to a display of their family crest.

Donnie then handed the computer over to Mikey, who brought up a website called _MyFace_. He logged in and showed April his friends list. On it were several people, some of whom April recognized as kids she had seen Mikey hang out with at school, and among them was Chris Bradford.

"Cool," said April.

"Not really," said Raph, "The guy's really into how cool he thinks he is."

"Excuse me?"' April asked.

"Mikey showed us his profile," said Donnie, "He's got more pictures of himself on there than, literally, anything else."

"For real?" April asked.

"Yeah," said Miwa, "That guy seems to feel the need to gloat about his popularity online."

"You know, just because he posts a lot of pictures of himself online doesn't mean he's a bad guy," said Mikey, pouting.

"I guarantee you mom and dad aren't gonna let you meet him," said Raph.

"Oh yeah?" said Mikey, "We'll see about that."

Mikey returned the laptop to Donnie and went down to the antique store where Shen was. Shen was getting ready to close shop when came down to talk to her.

"Mom, can I ask you something?" Mikey asked.

"Of course, Sweetie," said Shen, "What is it?"

"Chris Bradford's in the city this week for a martial arts expo," Mikey explained, "Can I go?"

Shen contemplated the idea for a bit, and then told him, "I'll have to talk with your father about that, but I see no reason why not."

With that, Shen locked the shop door and changed the sign to 'closed' before heading back up to the living space. After she left, Mikey started doing a little victory dance, happy that he was closer to getting his chance to meet Chris Bradford in person.

* * *

After Shen closed shop, she took Yoshi into their bedroom so that they could talk in private. Mikey waited in the living room with April and his siblings to hear what Shen and Yoshi would say about him going to the expo. He was hoping that they would say yes. He was tempted to listen eavesdrop their door, but was stopped by Leo.

"I really hope they say yes," said Mikey, pacing back and forth nervously, "I don't know what I'll do if I don't get to meet Chris Bradford."

"Mikey, relax," said April, "I'm sure they'll say yes."

"And if they say no, it's not the end of the world," said Raph, who was secretly hoping that they would say no.

Mikey was about to yell at Raph when their parents came out into the living room. Mikey walked over to them and waited to hear their decision.

"You're mother and I talked it over and we've made up our minds," said Yoshi, "If you promise to do your homework first, be home in time for dinner, and take someone with you, you may go."

Mikey's eyes lit up and his smile grew wider than they had ever seen before. He then jumped up and cheered, and then hugged his parents and said, "Thank you, so much! I love guys so much! This is gonna be so awesome!"

Mikey then did a victory dance, while his siblings wondered if their parents had made the right decision.

"Mom, dad, are you sure about that?" asked Raph, "I mean, this guy might not be a very good influence on Mikey."

"That is why we said for him to take someone with him," said Shen, "He's less likely to pick up any bad things if he's not alone."

"I hope you're right," said Miwa.

* * *

The next day, Mikey stayed true to his word and did his homework right when he got home from school; with Donnie helping him with what he could not understand of course. Mikey was so grateful to Donnie for helping him that he decided to invite him to go with him to the Chris Bradford expo, which Donnie accepted knowing that Mikey needed someone to go with him.

After both their homework was finished, Donnie and Mikey caught a bus to St. Mark's Civic Auditorium for the expo. They were very impressed with all of Bradford's new moves that he was showcasing. Donnie was starting to understand a little better why Mikey liked him so much.

"Okay, Mikey, I admit it, he's pretty impressive," said Donnie.

Mikey turned to his older twin and said, "I think you mean totally awesome!"

Donnie laughed a little at his brother's excitement and said, "Alright, he's awesome."

"Maybe, after the show we can try to talk to him," said Mikey.

"I don't know, Mikey," said Donnie, "This guy's famous. You guys might be online friends, but so are possibly thousands of other people."

"If you don't try how are you gonna find out?" Mikey asked.

Donnie crossed his arms and said, "As good a point as that is, that's not the point I was making."

"Look, D, I'm just gonna say 'hi' to the guy and then he'll see that I'm just a normal dude. Then, the next thing you know, we'll be best buds irl," said Mikey.

"Are you sure about that?" Donnie asked.

Mickey cocked his head at Donnie and asked, "What do you mean?"

"I didn't want to tell you this, but people lie a lot on the internet about what they're really like or who they really are," said Donnie, "I'm just a little worried that Chris might be one of those people."

Mikey looked upset at Donnie and said, "Chris isn't like that, I'm sure of it. We'll meet him later and you'll see."

Seeing that Mikey was not going to give up, Donnie let outfit a breath and said, "Okay, little brother, you win. We'll meet him."

Mikey smiled and said, "Sweet. Thanks, Donnie."

After the showcase was over for the night, Donnie and Mikey snuck to the backdoor of the auditorium to avoid having to push through the crowd of fans. Once outside, they waited for Chris to exit. Donnie did not want to tell Mikey, but he was starting to feel like a stalker. As they waited for Chris, Donnie and Mikey heard a small sound and looked up to see what was there.

Donnie caught a glimpse of Leo's blue mask and asked, "Guys, what are you doing here?"

Knowing that their cover had been blown, Leo, Miwa, and Raph jumped down from their hiding place and landed in front of Donnie and Mikey.

"We were patrolling this area so we decided to check on you two," said Miwa.

"And what do we find?" said Raph, "Our two younger brothers acting like stalkers."

Mikey shot his second oldest brother an angry look and snapped, "We're not being stalkers!"

"Could've fooled me," said Raph

"Look, guys, as long as I'm with Mikey, nothing's gonna happen to him," said Donnie, "You can just get back to your patrol. Don't worry about anything, okay?"

"We will once you two get home like you promised," said Leo.

"We will just as soon as I meet Chris Bradford," said Mikey.

"I don't think that's such a good idea," said Miwa, "There's an old saying: Never meet your heroes."

"Well, whoever first said that obviously didn't know Chris Bradford," said Mikey.

"Mikey, all we're saying is that we don't want you to be disappointed if he turns out to not be like you imagined," said Leo.

Mikey was about to say something back when Raph yelled, "Look out!" and pushed his younger brothers to the ground just in time to avoid an oncoming shuriken.

The teens all looked up and saw Chris Bradford standing a few feet away from them and holding more stars in his hands.

"We're being attacked by Chris Bradford!" Donnie screamed.

"This is so cool," said Mikey. Another star almost got them and caused Mikey to scream, "Or it would be if weren't the ones being attacked!"

Chris Bradford continued to throw shuriken at the teens. Donnie and Mikey did not have any weapons or ninja gear of any kind with them, so they had to allow their brothers and sister to protect them or else risk revealing themselves as ninjas. The attacked lasted for a full minute, and then Mikey found a way to make it stop.

"Stop! The ninjas come in peace! We all come in peace!" Mikey yelled, holding his hands up in a peaceful manner. "We're friends, you have to believe me!"

"What?" Bradford asked in surprise as he stopped attacking.

Mikey stepped forward, despite his siblings protests, and said, "I'm Mikey, we're online friends. This is my brother Donnie and these guys are harmless. They won't hurt you or any of us. They only fought back because they thought you were a threat. And I'm willing to bet that you attacked them because you thought they were gonna attack you or us. I'm right aren't I?"

Bradford listened to Mikey's words and watched closely as the ninjas seemed to be positioned around Donnie and Mikey. It was as though they were trying to protect them. This seemed to peek the martial artist's interest because he smiled at them and lowered his weapons.

"Oh, that's right, Mikey," he said in a friendly voice, "Of course I remember you. I'm sorry for attacking you, your brother, and your friends. I just didn't know what to expect when I saw three ninjas appear out of nowhere standing in front of two other kids."

"That's alright," said Leo, "And we're sorry too, for attacking back instead of explaining ourselves."

"We just got worried that you might hurt these two during the fight," said Miwa, "Believe me, Mr. Bradford, we have no desire to harm the innocent."

"So, you've heard of me?" said Bradford, feeling impressed that the ninja girl knew of him.

"Only through gossip," said Miwa, "But yes, I have."

"We all have," said Raph, "Now I think it might be a good idea to take these two back to their home and then we can start our patrol of the city."

"Aww, come on," Mikey whined, "I wanted to hang with Chris some more."

"You're going home and that's final," said Raph.

"Why don't you three start your patrol now," said Donnie, "We'll catch the next bus and head home ourselves. Don't put off your patrol just because of us."

"Alright," said Leo, "If you see our other two teammates, tell them to meet at the site of our most recent fight. They'll know what that mean."

"Okay," said Donnie.

With that, the three disguised teens climbed up to the roof and jumped across others until they were out of sight. Once they were gone, Donnie and Mikey started walking out of the alley to head for the bus stop. They did not get far before Bradford stopped them.

"The next bus isn't gonna be here for at least a half hour," said Bradford, "My dojo is pretty close to the bus stop, If you two want you can hang out there until the bus shows up."

Donnie was about to decline the offer when got in the way and said, "You bet we'll go! I've always wanted to see the inside of a Bradford dojo!"

Bradford smiled at Mikey's enthusiasm and said, "Great. Let's go."

Mikey happily followed Bradford, while Donnie looked unsure about the idea. The whole point of him going was to make sure Mikey did not do anything foolish, and now they going with Chris Bradford, a complete stranger to them, to a dojo he owned.

Donnie leaned closer to Mikey and whispered to him, "Mikey, I don't think this is such a good idea. I mean, we barely know this guy."

Mikey patted Donnie on the back and said, "Donnie, you watch too many crime shows. Just stick with your big brother Mikey and everything's gonna be fine."

Donnie frowned at that last statement and said, "I'm three minutes and fourteen seconds older than you."

Mikey simply shrugged and said, "Whatever."

And with that, the teens followed the martial artist to his dojo to wait for the bus. The whole time, Bradford taught them some moves he knew.

* * *

Later, after Donnie and Mikey caught up, Leo looked at the roof of the building he and his siblings were on when they were ambushed by the ninjas from the roof of a building across from there. Donnie stood next to him as he went over the events of the previous battle.

"They probably waited for us here," said Leo, "It's the perfect place to stage an ambush."

"That wasn't very fair," said Donnie.

"It's not about being fair," Leo snapped, "It's about victory."

Donnie held up his hands in defense and said, "Okay, sorry."

Leo was about to say more when he heard still going on about the moves he learned from Chris Bradford. Raph and Miwa were starting to become more and more annoyed by the minute hearing all of this.

"And then, he let me take a picture of us together!" said Mikey, "Just wait till Jason sees it; he's gonna be so jealous. I've got it on my phone if you wanna see it."

"Enough already!" said Raph, "You've been going on about the guy ever since you and Donnie got here!"

"Oh, somebody sounds jealous," said Mikey, smirking smugly, "Just couldn't handle the fact that you guys were wrong about him."

"We're not wrong about him," said Miwa.

"That's what you think," said Mikey, "But I think Donnie and I are better qualified to judge him than you guys. Because, you know, we actually met him."

Leo turned to Donnie and asked, "What's he like?"

Donnie rubbed the back of his neck and said, "I only just met him tonight, so I don't really know what to say about him."

"You could tell them that before we left to catch the bus, Chris Bradford invited us to go back to the dojo after school tomorrow for private lessons!" said Mikey.

"What?!" Miwa, Leo, and Raph asked in surprise.

"It's true," said Donnie, "Bradford said we have potential and wanted to train us."

"There is no way you two are going!" Raph snapped.

"Will you relax?" said Mikey, "Chris is cool. And Donnie and I learned a couple of really cool moves from him. Imagine how much more we could learn that could help in our fights against the Kraang?"

Raph was about say something back when Miwa put her on his shoulder and shook her head. And then Leo stepped forward to talk to them.

"Alright, we'll let you two go," said Leo, "But you have to share whatever you learned with the rest us."

Donnie and Mikey put their left hands on their hearts, held up their right hands, and said, "We promise."

"Good," said Leo.

* * *

The next day, after school was over for the day, Donnie and Mikey headed straight for the Bradford dojo stopping only to get a pizza from Antonio's and a six pack of soda from a mini-mart. When they arrived at the dojo, Donnie and Mikey went to the upper level and found Chris punching and kicking a punching bag.

Mikey smiled brightly at Chris and said, "There's my best buddy in the whole world!"

Donnie could have sworn he heard Chris groan before he turned around with a smile and said, "Michelangelo. Mikey. The big 'M'. And I see you brought your brother with you. How are you two doing?"

"We are stupendous, Chris," said Mikey, "Chrisy B. I've gotta work on your nickname. Oh wait, I've got it. How Rad Brad?"

"Yeah, that's nice," said Chris, "You know, I was just thinking about how we're such close friends, yet I know so little about you."

Donnie raised an eyebrow and asked, "You think you and Mikey close friends?"

"Of course. You too, Donnie," said Bradford, "Now tell me everything about you. Both of you."

Donnie had a bad feeling about this situation, so he kept silent. Mikey on the other hand did not have the same feeling as Donnie and decided to answer Chris's question.

"Where do begin?" said Mikey.

"Mikey, don't!" Donnie whispered.

Mikey then smiled and said, "I've named all ten of my toes!"

Donnie looked like he was about to throw up and Chris pretended to be interested and said, "That's fascinating."

"I think you mean too much information," said Donnie.

Mikey ignored Donnie and Chris started listing his toes in order by name, "The left big toe is Stubby, and the second one is Joey Nails..."

Chris stopped him in mid-sentence and, "Actually, I was thinking more about those ninjas. You seemed to be very well acquainted with them."

"Oh, you could say that," said Mikey, and then went back to his toes introduction, "Next are the stinky triplets. Their names are..."

"Mikey, please stop!" said Donnie, "That's enough."

Mikey looked ashamed and said, "Sorry, Donnie."

Before either teen could say anything else, Bradford cleared his throat and said, "So, who's hungry?"

Mikey's head shot up and he said, "Me! We brought a pizza with us! Do you like pizza?"

"Yeah, sure," said Bradford.

"Awesome!" Mickey cheered, and then he hugged Bradford and said, "We have so much in common."

Mikey did not notice, but Bradford gulped and looked uncomfortable. Donnie noticed that, but remained silent about it.

While the trio ate lunch together, Bradford decided to try to find out more about the kids. The way he saw it, there must be some kind of connection between them and the ninjas and he wanted to know what it was. If only the kid he was asking could be a little more helpful.

"This is the life," said Mikey, "Just three dudes hanging out and eating pizza together."

"Yeah, really cool," said Bradford, sarcastically. He then turned to Donnie and asked, "So, Donnie, what exactly can you tell about those ninjas?"

Donnie got a bad feeling about Bradford and said, "Not much. Only that they protect the city in secret."

"Oh, that's brilliant," said Bradford, disappointed that he could not get any information from Donnie.

Just as Mikey was getting ready to devour another slice of pizza, he noticed a katana on display on Bradford's mental. Fascinated by the sword Mikey walked away from the pizza, straight for the sword, and looked closely at it.

"Wow," said Mikey, "Donnie, check out this katana. It looks old."

Donnie went over to look at the sword as well while Bradford explained, "Yes, it's over four-hundred years old. Now, getting back to the ninjas. How do you two know them really?"

Donnie was beginning to feel uncomfortable with the questions and wanted to get Mikey and go home before Mikey accidentally said something he should not. Luckily, Mikey had enough sense to not reveal the truth.

"Look, Rad Brad, I'd love to tell you," Mikey said, taking down the katana, "But there are some things that I have to keep secret. Donnie's the same."

Mikey unsheathed the sword, much to Bradford's shock, and started swinging it around. Donnie laughed a little as Bradford tried to get the sword out of his hands. Finally, Bradford caught Mikey's wrist and took the sword from him.

"But we're friends," said Bradford, "And friends share each other's secrets."

Donnie looked curiously at Bradford, while Mikey smiled and asked, "Does this mean you'll show us your secret kata, the Death Dragon?"

Bradford put the katana back on the mantel and said, "Tell you what, as a sign of trust and friendship, I will teach you both the Death Dragon."

Mikey's smile grew and he asked, "Really?"

Bradford turned around to face the boys and added, "But you have to swear not to show it to anyone."

Mikey held up his right hand and said, "I promise, I won't show a soul."

"Good," said Bradford, and then he turned to Donnie and asked, "And you?"

Donnie raised his right hand and said, "I promise too."

* * *

Later at the lair, Mikey and Donnie decided to show the Death Dragon to Leo, Raph, and Miwa even though they promised Bradford that they would not. As much as Mikey wanted to keep his promise to Bradford, he also remembered the promise he made to Leo about teaching the others what he and Donnie learned.

Once Mikey finished giving his demonstration, he stood proudly and smiled at his siblings.

"What do you think?" Mikey asked.

"That was amazing!" said Miwa, "I don't think I've ever seen a move like that before!"

"I think I see why Bradford keeps it a secret," said Leo, "That's a very effective and complex move."

"And yet even Mikey could learn it," said Raph, in a mocking tone.

"Thank you," said Mikey, and then he caught on to the insult, "Hey!"

Leo realized that Donnie seemed lost in thought and asked, "You okay, Donnie?"

Donnie let out a sigh and said, "I don't know, Leo. While Mikey and I were at the Bradford Dojo, Bradford kept asking all kinds of questions about you guys; your ninja selves I mean."

"Really?" Raph asked, "Like what?"

"Like who you were or how we know you," said Donnie, "Neither of us gave specific answers, but the questions made me feel really uncomfortable."

"Why do you think he wanted to know that?" Miwa asked.

Mikey simply shrugged and said, "It's a reasonable question. Who wouldn't question why three ninjas were protecting the two of us?"

Donnie sighed and said, "I guess that makes sense."

Suddenly, Mikey heard an alarm and reached into his pocket for his cell phone. He looked at his messages and smiled.

"It's Rad Brad!" said Mikey, "That's my little nickname for him. He wants to get together for a little B-Ball. Hey, Donnie, you wanna come with?"

Donnie thought for a second and then answered, "I think I should."

"Great!" said Mikey, and then he started texting and said, "I'll let him know!"

Mikey started to swiftly text Bradford a reply. When he was finished, he put his phone back in his pocket, grabbed Donnie by his arm and started pulling him away.

"Later, dudes and dudette!" said Mikey as he pulled Donnie along with him and headed for the exit.

"Wait, you two are going now?" Leo asked.

"Sorry, guys, celebrity friend stuff. You know how it is," said Mikey, "Oh, no, you don't."

Mikey laughed triumphantly and left the dojo. Donnie looked back at his older siblings and told them, "I'll watch over him." And then he followed Mikey.

After Mikey and Donnie left, Yoshi and Shen arrived at the lair to watch their children train. Upon entering the dojo, Yoshi and Shen found Miwa standing by while Leo and Raph trained together. Shen was about to ask what type of kata the boys were practicing when suddenly, Leo kicked, twisted, and swept his leg under Raph's feet, causing him to fall to the floor. Yoshi and Shen were shocked at the sight, for they recognized the technique.

"Where did you learn that?!" Yoshi furiously asked.

Leo helped Raph back up to his feet and said, "Mikey and Donnie learned it from Chris Bradford."

"He said it was a show of trust and friendship," said Miwa.

"That man is no friend of theirs or ours," said Shen, "That technique comes from the Shredder."

"What?!" Miwa asked.

"The Shredder?!" Raph added.

"Are saying that Bradford is one of his students?" Leo asked.

"He must be," said Yoshi.

"That explains why he was asking Donnie and Mikey all those questions about our ninja identities," said Miwa, "This whole time he was just pretending to be their friend in order to get to us and you, dad."

Raph growled and said, "We were right not to trust him!" and then he realized the real problem at hand, "Mikey and Donnie are in trouble! They went to go see him before you got here!"

Yoshi's eyes narrowed and he said, "Then you must go save them!"

"Way ahead of you, dad," said Leo, and then he, Miwa, and Raph ran to get their gear.

* * *

While their siblings were getting ready to come save them, Donnie and Mikey had just arrived at the Bradford dojo and were going up the stairs to meet up with Bradford. According to the message, Bradford had wanted them to meet him at the dojo and they would all go to the basketball court together.

As they went up the stairs, Donnie was starting to get a bad feeling. "Does any of this seem a little strange to you?"

"What do you mean?" Mikey asked.

"Well, he said he wanted us to meet him here, but it doesn't look like anyone's even here," said Donnie, "It just seems strange."

Mikey grinned and said, "Maybe, he planned us a surprise party!"

Mikey was about to rush ahead when Donnie stopped him and said, "I'm serious. Something about this doesn't feel right."

Finally getting what Donnie meant, Mikey looked worried and asked, "You think something happened to Rad Brad?"

Donnie looked up to the top of the stairs and said, "I don't know. But there's only one way to find out. Wait here. I'll go up first, and if it's safe, I'll signal you. If you hear anything like screaming or yelling, I want you to run away as fast as you can and find help."

"Okay," said Mikey, "Be careful, Donnie."

Donnie nodded and then snuck quietly up the stairs to the upper level. Mikey waited quietly for Donnie to give him a signal that everything was fine. He started to worry about his brother until he heard a knocking sound coming from above. He figured that this must be Donnie's signal and went up the stairs to meet up with him.

Once he reached the upper level of the dojo, Mikey called out, "Donnie, you here? Is Rad Brad alright?"

Unbeknownst to Mikey, a dark skinned man was hiding in the shadows holding Donnie back and had his hand over Donnie's mouth so he could not scream. Not only that but a large muscular figure crept up behind him and got ready to grab him. Before that could happen, Mikey heard Donnie's voice yell, "Mikey, run!"

Mikey looked behind him and saw the muscular man just in time to dodge him. He looked to the left and saw the dark skinned man holding a struggling Donnie tightly.

Mikey glared at both men and snapped, "Let my brother go! And tell me what you did with Chris!"

"Be a good boy and surrender, and your brother won't be hurt," said the muscular man, in a strangely familiar voice.

"Don't listen to him!" Donnie screamed, "Just get out of here!"

"Quiet, brat!" the muscular man snapped at Donnie. He looked back at Mikey and asked, "So, what's it gonna be?"

"No, Mikey! Don't worry about me!" Donnie screamed, "Escape while you still can!"

Mikey stood in silence and thought over the choices. If he obeyed these guys, who knows what they would do to him and Donnie. On the other hand, if he listened to Donnie and fled, then he could be leaving his brother for dead. Seeing no other way, Mikey held up his hands in surrender and allowed the muscular man to tie him up.

The dark skinned man brought Donnie over to be tied next to Mikey when Mikey asked, "Who are you?"

The muscular man laughed at Mikey and then turned to him and asked, "Haven't you figured it out yet?"

"Should I have?" Mikey asked.

"We have already met face to face," said the muscular man, "And before that, we met online. I believe I even taught you and your brother here a new move today."

Donnie and Mikey's eyes widened in shock. "No way. It can't be," said Mikey, "Rad Brad?"

The muscular man removed his helmet and revealed himself to... Chris Bradford. Bradford himself smirked and said, "I don't care for that nickname."

Mikey stared in shock at his idol. He was on the verge of tears as he said, "I thought we were friends. I shared pizza with you. We took a picture together. I even introduced you to my brother."

Bradford looked coldly at Mikey and said, "Did you really think that someone like me could ever be friends with you? You annoy me to no end! I only put up with you because I thought you might have some helpful information on those ninjas. Unfortunately, it turned out to be a waste of time because you never gave me anything useful."

Donnie glared at Bradford and snapped, "I knew you couldn't be trusted!"

Bradford turned around to face Donnie and said, "You weren't any better. Your information was vague at best." His face changed to and evil smile and he added, "But luckily, I have a backup plan."

Donnie continued to glare at Bradford and asked, "What's that?"

Bradford walked up to Donnie, got in his face, and said, "You two of course. You're going to act as bait to lure the ninjas."

"Don't stand that close to me, I can smell your breath," said Donnie, "And it smells like onions."

Bradford's partner started laughing at that statement, earning him a glare from Bradford.

"Clam it, Xever!" Bradford snapped.

"How can I not laugh?" the other man, Xever, asked, "That was hilarious!"

"I'm warning you, right now, Dirt Clod!" Bradford snapped, "If you don't shut up, I'll make you shut up!"

"Oh yeah?" Xever asked, tossing Donnie aside, "And just how do you plan to do that, Snob?"

While Bradford and Xever were bickering, Donnie decided to use this as his chance to free himself and Mikey. He untied his own ropes and then quietly snuck over to Mikey and untied him; Bradford and Xever were so focused on their own fight that they did not notice what was going on. After Donnie untied Mikey, they started to sneak away quietly to the staircase. By the time Xever noticed that the boys were escaping, they had already started going down the stairs.

The brothers ran out of the dojo as fast as they could and made to the streets. Donnie led the way to an alley where they went down a manhole into the sewers. What they had failed to realize was that Bradford and Xever had been following them and saw them go underground. Donnie and Mikey ran through the sewers together until Donnie heard footsteps coming from ahead of them. They quickly hid in a side tunnel and waited to see who it was. To their relief, it was their older brothers and sister. Donnie assumed that they were heading to the dojo to help him and Mikey.

"Guys, we're here!" Donnie called.

The three ninjas looked back and saw Donnie and Mikey standing not far away. Donnie waved at them while Mikey smiled happily. Leo, Miwa, and Raph ran to them and started looking them over.

"Are you two okay?" Leo asked in concern, "Bradford didn't hurt you, did he?"

Donnie shook his head and said, "No, we're okay. But finding out his true colors did do a number on Mikey."

Mikey frowned and said, "He told me that he never really thought of me as a friend. He was only hanging out with me and Donnie to get info from us. But when we didn't give him anything useful, he decided to hold us hostage to lure you into a trap."

"But, luckily, he and his partner, Xever, didn't seem to get along," said Donnie, "I was able to use their fighting as a distraction from Mikey and me escaping."

Raph smiled at his little brother and said, "Nice thinking."

Donnie smiled and said, "It's what I do best."

"But wait," said Miwa, "There might be a chance that they noticed you two escaped and went looking for you."

"If that's the case, then they may already know we're down here," said Donnie.

Leo grinned at the knowledge and said, "But they don't know these tunnels like we do. So, I'd say we have the upper hand."

Raph smiled and said, "And we have two more ninjas with us this time than we did the last time we met him."

Realizing what Raph was implying, Miwa laughed and led her two youngest brothers to the place where they had stashed extra ninja gear. Donnie and Mikey changed into the gear and listened to Leo's plan of attack.

* * *

Meanwhile, Bradford and Xever, along with several Foot ninjas, were walking through the sewers trying to find any signs of Donnie and Mikey; if they did not find the kids, then their trap would fail. Unfortunately, the sewers were full of several tunnels, so they kept on losing their way or forgetting where they had been and gone around in circles.

They did not seem to notice that their Foot ninjas were disappearing into the shadows one by one. The reason for that was because the ninja teens grabbed them and pulled them away. This kept up until it was down to just Bradford and Xever.

Bradford and Xever eventually found themselves at a waterfall and noticed that their ninjas were gone. Xever lit up a torch and saw the Foot ninjas unconscious and hanging from the ceiling.

"Show your faces!" Xever shouted.

Right after Xever shouted, Miwa and Raph came up from the water, followed by Donnie and Mikey from the shadows. Finally, Leo appeared from above and stood in front of Xever and Bradford.

The ninja teens unsheathed their weapons and Leo said to Bradford and Xever, "You two have got a lot of nerve trying to hold two kids hostage just to trap us."

"And to think one of them actually idolized you!" Mikey snapped at Bradford.

"I'm guessing the brats told you about that," said Bradford.

"That's correct," said Miwa, "So, if it's a fight you want, that's what you'll get."

"Sounds good to me," said Xever.

With that, Bradford and Xever charged at the ninja teens and the teens charged at them. Bradford fought Leo and Raph, while Xever's opponents were Miwa, Donnie and, Mikey. Leo and Raph had a hard time matching Bradford's speed and strength and their attacks were blocked and deflected back to them. Miwa, Donnie and, Mikey were not having an easier time fighting Xever since he was agile and it did not help that he at one point used Donnie as a weapon. Seeing their problem, the ninjas tricked Xever and Bradford into following them so that the two teams could switch opponents. Leo and Raph over powered Xever and Miwa, Donnie, and Mikey outsmarted Bradford.

To finish them, Mikey used the Death Dragon on Bradford and Raph punched Xever in the face. The two evil ninjas were back to back sitting in front of a waterfall, but did not realize it until they saw Leo and Donnie turn a valve. The next thing they knew, they were screaming their heads off while being swept away by raw sewage. The ninja teens watched the whole thing with smiles on their faces.

"Well, that wasn't very fair," said Raph.

"No it wasn't," said Leo, and then they all laughed and high-fived each other.

* * *

Later after they got home, the teens changed out of their ninja garb and celebrated their victory with a pizza. Donnie noticed that his parents were not eating and looked troubled by something.

"Mom, dad, aren't you guys hungry?" he asked.

"I fear we may be celebrating too soon," said Yoshi.

"What're you talking about?" Raph asked, "The bad guys got swept away in river of raw sewage. I'd say now's the perfect time to celebrate."

Shen shook her head and said, "You don't understand. The Shredder knows that we are here in the city."

"Worse than that, if he knows that Miwa, Leonardo, your mother and I are here, then it is only a matter of time before he finds out about you, Donatello, and Michelangelo," said Yoshi, "It is my worst fear come true."

Leo looked worried and asked, "So, it's not over?"

"No," said Yoshi, "I fear this is only the beginning."

"For right now, I believe we have another problem to fix," said Shen, gesturing to Donnie and Mikey's room.

Knowing that Shen was referring to Mikey, the family went to his room to check on him. They found him lying on his stomach on his bed and looking at Chris Bradford's myface page on Donnie's computer. He was visibly sad as he stared at the screen.

Shen sat down next to Mikey and asked him, "How are feeling, Michelangelo?"

Mikey looked up at his mother and said, "This was all my fault. I never should've thought Bradford could be my friend."

"Oh, Sweetie, come here," Shen said and then pulled her youngest son into a hug, "It's alright, what happened was not your fault. Bradford was the one who took advantage of you."

"Yeah, but I was the one who believed him," said Mikey.

"Only because he told you things that you wanted to hear," said Miwa, "It's easy to misread a person's true nature when you want something to be true."

"I still can't believe he called me annoying right to my face," said Mikey.

"Come on, Mikey, don't worry about what he thinks," said Raph, "He's a psychotic killing machine. You're an awesome guy."

"If Bradford can't see that, then that's his problem," said Leo.

"You have a lot of friends, Mikey," said Donnie, "Online and in real life. And they're all much better than Bradford."

Mikey smiled at what his family told him and came to a realization. "You're right guys," said Mikey, "I think it's time to do something that I should've done a long time ago."

Mikey turned back to the computer and pressed some keys. Once he pretty the left mouse key, the word 'unfriend' appeared in front of Chris Bradford's picture. Mikey then turned back to his family and joined them for pizza. Even though they knew they would have to face the Foot Clan eventually, tonight the Hamato family was happy to be together for pizza.


	6. Duties of the First Born

**Author's Note:** I apologize for making the previous chapter a little too close to the original source. I'll do my best to avoid that in future chapters.

* * *

 **Duties of the First Born**

After the incident with Bradford and Xever, Miwa seemed to poor herself into ninja training. So much so that it was beginning to worry the rest of her family. All she did after school and on weekends was train nonstop, she even skipped practice with the gymnastics team three times in the past week. At the moment, Miwa was going through her katas in the dojo. She kept getting frustrated with her minimal progress. She kept up her practice until she fell to the floor from exhaustion.

As laid on the floor breathing heavily, many thoughts went through Miwa's head. She had to get stronger, she had to get stronger fast, she had to protect her brothers. Suddenly, her thoughts were interrupted by her twin brother looking down at her.

"Onee-san, what are you doing?" Leo asked his twin sister.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" said Miwa, "I'm training."

"I can see that," said Leo, "What I don't understand is why you're you're not taking a break. What are you trying to prove?"

Miwa let out a breath and answered, "I'm doing it for you, Raph, Donnie, and Mikey. So I can protect you better."

Leo blinked in surprise at what his sister said. "You do know that we're ninjas too, right? We're perfectly capable of protecting ourselves and those around us," said Leo.

"I know you guys are ninjas," said Miwa, "But still, I'm the oldest, it's my job to protect you guys."

Leo shook his head and said, "Miwa, you don't have to worry about us. Worrying about the team is kind of my job; I am the leader, you know."

Miwa pushed herself up into a sitting position and Leo held his hand out to her to help her up. Miwa took Leo's hand and let him help her up.

"You may be the leader, but I'm still your big sister," said Miwa, "And that means it's still my job to keep you all safe."

* * *

Miwa then started to walk away, leaving Leo both confused and a bit worried. He had never seen his sister like this before.

The next day after school, Miwa was about to head to the lair to train when she ran into April and her friend Irma.

"There you are, Miwa," said April, "Irma and I were just heading to the movies. You wanna come along?"

"Oh sorry, girls, I can't," said Miwa, "I'm really busy. I promised my mother that I'd help her with the store."

With that, Miwa took off practically in a flash. As she walked away, April and Irma watched her with confused expressions on their faces.

"Funny," said Irma, "I always thought she preferred fun over work."

"So did I," said April.

* * *

Once everyone returned home, the teens removed their backpacks and Raph headed for his and Leo's bedroom to get his hockey gear for practice while Leo went to the living room to watch "Space Heroes" on T.V., Mikey went to get his skateboard gear to go hangout with his friend Jason, Donnie went for his laptop to find info on the Kraang, and Miwa made her way to the door to train in the lair.

She was just about to turn the knob when she heard the house phone ring. Seeing that she was closest one to it, Miwa took the phone, pressed a button, and said, "Hello, Kurarama residence. Miwa speaking. Who's calling, please?"

" _Oh, hello,_ " said an English accented male voice on the other end, " _I'm Dr. Tyler Rockwell. May I speak Donatello, please? It's about his interview for the lab assistant job._ "

"Okay," said Miwa, feeling puzzled. She took the phone to Donnie in the living room, held out to him and said, "Donnie, it's for you. It's some guy named Rockwell about a lab assistant job."

At the mention of the doctor and the job, Donnie eagerly snatched the phone from his sister and said, "Thanks, sister's!"

As Donnie talked with Rockwell, Miwa looked puzzled and asked, "When the heck did he apply for a job?"

"If you paid half as much to current events as you have to training lately, you'd know that one of your little brothers applied for a job and another has a big hockey game in a few weeks," said a familiar voice.

Miwa looked over and saw Raph leaning against the doorway with a duffel bag full of his hockey gear. And looked really annoyed.

"I'll see you after practice," said Raph, and then he headed out the front door. Leaving his sister feeling ashamed of how little she knew about what was happening.

* * *

Later, the boys sparred together while Miwa trained with Yoshi. As usual for the past few weeks, Miwa was pushing herself harder than she should be. Finally, Miwa got so tired that she fell to the floor from exhaustion.

Miwa sat on the floor breathing heavily, and then she attempted to stand up again to continue.

"I think that is enough training for now," said Yoshi, "You need to rest, my daughter."

"I'm fine," said Miwa, "I just need a second, then I can keep going."

"You need longer than a second, Miwa," said Yoshi, "For now, just sit on the sidelines and watch your brothers train."

"I have to become stronger," said Miwa.

"And you will," said Yoshi, "At the appropriate pace."

"You just don't get it! I need to get stronger now!" Miwa shouted, startling her brothers into stopping.

Yoshi sat down in front of his daughter and asked her, "Miwa, what is wrong with you lately? You're not yourself anymore."

"We've all noticed that," said Raph, "And, frankly, we're starting to get more than a little concerned."

"All you seem to do lately is train," said Mikey.

"You hardly ever get enough sleep anymore, you've skipped gymnastics practice I don't know how many times, and I can't remember the last time you ate at the table with us at dinner," said Donnie, "What you're doing isn't healthy."

"Even April and mother are worried about you," said Leo, "I remember you telling me it's to protect us, but why the sudden need to drive yourself into exhaustion?"

As Miwa sat on the floor, she contemplated what to say. She was unsure what to say that could help her family understand. Finally, she knew that all she could say was the truth. So she took a deep breath and explained.

"I should've protected Donnie better from the Kraang, but they took him and almost got away with him. And then both he and Mikey were held hostage by Bradford and Xever and I couldn't do anything to stop it," Miwa told her family, tears threatening to fall from her eyes, "I almost lost my baby brothers forever, and all because I was too weak to stop it!"

Miwa started crying her eyes out, while her father and brothers looked sad. Mikey then knelt down to her level and gave her a hug. The others joined in as well along with Yoshi.

Yoshi lifted Miwa's chin up to look her in the face and, "My daughter, you are not weak. You are you one of the strongest ninjas I have ever trained."

"And what happened wasn't your fault," said Donnie, "There was no way any of us could have anticipated the Kraang or Bradford and Xever."

"Still, you guys are _my_ little brothers, I'm supposed to look out for you," said Miwa, "It's one of the duties of being the first born."

"Miwa, you are the first born, this is true," said Yoshi, "And being the first born does come with many responsibilities. However, these responsibilities do not include you training yourself until you have no energy left."

"You sound like you've had experience in this," said Miwa.

"I did," said Yoshi, "When was a boy, Saki fell into a river and almost drowned. I blamed myself for not being strong enough to protect him. I poured myself into my ninja training in an effort to become stronger faster. One day, my father took me aside and told me the same thing I told you."

Miwa looked down, and Yoshi brought her face up again and said, "Miwa, I know that you love your brothers and that you want to protect them, but if you keep pushing yourself like this, you will only make yourself worse. Promise me, my daughter, that you will not hurt yourself just to become powerful."

Miwa let her father's words sink and then said, "I promise, father."

Yoshi put his hand on her shoulder and said, "That's my big girl. Now rest, my daughter, you earned it."

Miwa nodded and did as father told her. She went to the sidelines and sat down to watch her brothers spar together. As she watched them train, Miwa still felt that she needed to protect them from danger, but she no longer felt the need to wear herself down to do so. She made a mental note to take them out to the movies to make up for neglecting them.


	7. Attack of the Techno Psycho

**Attack of the Techno Psycho**

After Miwa agreed to stop pushing herself too hard, things got back to normal in the Hamato home. They had not encountered any of the Foot Clan ninjas since Bradford and Xever, but still kept up their training just in case and also continued to find more evidence that could help them find the Kraang and rescue April's dad. The latter proved to be a more difficult task as the Kraang did not leave a lot of clues.

Today, the kids were heading out to a military junkyard to collect parts for Donnie to use in his inventions. They had told their parents that they were going to see April, but that was a lie; Yoshi and Shen had forbidden them from going to junkyards of any kind because it is not safe and they could get arrested for trespassing. As much as they disliked lying to their parents, the kids did not see any other way to get the parts that Donnie needed.

"I don't like this," said Mikey, upon arrival at the junkyard, "We're gonna get arrested."

"No we won't," Donnie said, sounding like it was no big deal, "I sneak in here all the time and I've never been caught once. Just remember your ninja stealth and everything will be fine."

The kids snuck around until they came to an opening in the gate that Donnie used to secretly enter the junkyard. Once they all were inside, the kids started looking around for anything that might have working parts for Donnie's projects. Together, they each started filling their backpacks with old computer parts. Suddenly, Donnie felt something on the ground under his foot. He looked down and found a fascinating looking chip. Feeling like he could have use of the chip, Donnie picked it up and put it in his pocket. After that, he and the others continued rummaging for parts.

Once all of their bags were full, the kids snuck out of the junkyard and headed for home. Upon arrival, the kids went down to the lair to drop off the parts that they had gathered. Unfortunately, their parents were waiting there and they looked furious.

"Hi, Mother. Hi, Father," said Leo, "What's going on?"

"Your mother called April's aunt to remind you that Michelangelo has a doctor's appointment today," Yoshi said, sounding as furious as he looked, "However, according to her, you had not been there at all."

The kids froze in fear as it seemed their secret was out.

"So, where were you, really?" asked Shen.

The teens all struggled to find an answer to give their parents. Suddenly, Mikey got so nervous that he dropped his bag and the parts he collected fell out. Yoshi and Shen saw everything that Mikey had dropped and realized where their children had gone.

"You went to a junkyard?" Shen asked.

"Well, Donnie needed parts," said Raph.

"What did we tell you about going to a junkyard?" Yoshi asked.

"Some of the parts Donnie needed are really expensive," said Leo, "And others can't be bought at any stores."

Yoshi kept his furious face and said, "You all deliberately disobeyed both your mother and me! Not only that, but you lied to us! You are all grounded for a week!"

The teens looked shocked at what their father said to them.

"That means no hanging out with friends, no video games, no cell phones, no computer, no listening to music, and straight home after school," said Shen, "Drop those bags and come back to the house with us."

The teens groaned and dropped their bags on the floor. They started to follow their parents when Mikey got an idea.

"On the bright side, we'll have plenty of time to catch up on some Mega Rangers," said Mikey.

"Not to mention Space Heroes," Leo added.

"Not that dumb show," Raph groaned.

Suddenly, Shen turned around and said, "Oh, I almost forgot, no T.V."

"Ugh!" Mikey whined.

* * *

The next day after school, the Hamato teens met up to walk home together. Four of them were already outside the school, now they were waiting on Donnie. During the wait, Raph was pacing back and forth, still peeved about having to go straight home instead of hanging out with Casey and his other friends.

"I can't believe we have to avoid our friends for a whole week!" Raph snapped, kicking a trashcan.

"Don't you think _we're_ upset about the whole thing too?" asked Miwa, "But what choice do we have?"

Finally, Donnie came running out of the school with a smile on his face.

"Guys! Guys!" Donnie called, coming to a stop in front of his siblings, "You wanna see what I made?"

"See, this is how bored I am," said Raph to his other siblings. He then turned to his immediate younger brother and said, "Yes, Donnie, show us what you made."

Donnie chose to ignore Raph's insult from before and said, "Okay, you remember when we went scrounging around the military junkyard the other day?"

"Yeah," Raph flatly said, "That's how we got grounded."

Donnie cleared his throat and continued, "Well, I used some of the parts that I was able to bring home to make this." Donnie reached into his backpack and pulled out a circular device with square, arrow, and round buttons on it. "It just so happens to be the most advanced music player in the world."

"Whoa," said his siblings in unison as the stared at the device. And Leo looked at Donnie and asked, "Where did you find the time to make it?"

"During lunch," said Donnie, "So, who wants to try it? I already downloaded some songs onto it."

"I do!" said Mikey, "Toss me the nin-pod!"

Donnie raised an eyebrow and asked, "Nin-pod?"

Mikey nodded and said, "Ninja. Pod. Nin-pod. I am so good at naming stuff."

"Mikey, it's Donnie's invention. Let him name it," said Miwa.

"Actually, I kinda like that name for it," said Donnie, "Nin-pod it is."

Donnie then handed the newly named nin-pod over to Mikey. Mikey in turn plugged his ear buds into the music player and stuck the ear buds into his ears. He pressed the button to play the music that Donnie had downloaded onto the music player, and then, suddenly, Mikey screamed in pain.

"What's wrong?" Donnie asked in panic.

"It hurts!" Mikey screamed.

"You idiot! Your piece of junk is probably melting Mikey's brain right now!" Raph snapped angrily at Donnie.

"Worse! It's playing polka!" Mikey screamed, making his siblings frown in annoyance, "Make it stop! Make it stop!"

Donnie rolled his eyes at his younger brother and pressed a button to skip to the next song. Mikey smiled at the sound of funky music. He was so into the music that he could not help but get up and dance to it. The sight was enough to make the others laugh. And then they all walked home together.

* * *

Later that night, Raph got out of bed, changed into his regular clothes, grabbed his skateboard, helmet and padding, and snuck out of his and Leo's room.

He was nearly at the back door when he heard a familiar voice say in a whisper, "Where do think you're going?"

Raph jumped in surprise and swiftly turned around to see his brothers and sister standing just a few inches away from him. The one who spoke up was Leo, and he did not look pleased, nor did Miwa. Donnie and Mikey on the other hand looked confused about why their big brother was out of his room in the middle of the night.

Seeing that he was caught, Raph sighed and whispered, "I'm going to find a skate spot."

"Skate spot? Awesome!" Mikey whispered in excitement, "I'll come too!"

"Raph!" Leo hissed, "We're grounded!"

"I don't care," said Raph, "If I don't do something, I'm gonna go nuts."

"What are mother and father gonna say?" Leo asked.

"Father is going to say, 'I don't know what's going on, Shen. They snuck out while we were asleep'," said Raph, doing a poor impression of their father, "And then mother will respond, 'Okay, Yoshi,' and then go back to sleep."

Miwa crossed her arms across her chest and said, "Oh yeah, very mature."

Leo then stepped forward and said, "But I'm the leader. And as your leader, I say no one's going."

Suddenly, Mikey came out dressed in his outside clothes and padding holding his skateboard in his arms and joined Raph, who smiled that his little brother were joining him.

He smirked at Leo and said, "Well, we're going anyway. The rest of you can either come along or you can stay here and be bored for the rest of the night."

Miwa, Leo, and Donnie thought about the choices. While they disliked the idea of sneaking out of the house while they were grounded, they disliked being cooped up even more. Finally, they made their decision.

"I'll go with you," said Donnie.

"Me too," said Leo, "As your leader. To lead you... away... from bad stuff."

"Me too," said Miwa, "Because I'm the oldest and it's my job to watch you."

"Cool," said Raph, "Now gear up and come with us."

Miwa, Leo, and Donnie rolled their eyes at Raph and left to change into their clothes and padding and grab their boards. Mikey went back to his room as well and got the nin-pod So he could listen to music while he skateboards.

After Miwa, Leo, and Donnie came out of their rooms in their skating clothes and holding their boards, Miwa got right in Raph's face and said, "If we get in more trouble, I promise you, little brother, that you will face my wrath!"

"Duly noted," said Raph, feeling slightly nervous.

And with that, they all snuck quietly towards the back door. Donnie stopped at one point to turn off the burglar alarm so it would not go off while they were sneaking out. Once they were all outside, Donnie reset the alarm with an app on his phone to prevent robberies. And then they all took off into the night.

* * *

As the teens jumped from building to building, Mikey was having the time of his life skateboarding and listening to music on the new player.

"Yo, Donnie, thanks for all the new songs!" Mikey called to his older twin.

"Huh?" Donnie asked, "What new songs?"

"The songs on the nin-pod!" Mikey called again, "There's so many it's hard to count!"

"What?!" Donnie asked, "I only downloaded a few songs! Let me see that thing!"

"Sure thing!" said Mikey, and then he tossed the nin-pod to Donnie.

Donnie caught the music player and looked closely at it. Upon inspection, Donnie found many songs on the music player that were not there before. Not only that, but the nin-pod was still downloading new ones by itself.

"Holy cow!" said Donnie, "This thing has thousands of songs on it and it keeps downloading new ones every second!"

"So?" Raph asked.

"So, I didn't program it to do that," said Donnie. And then something occurred to him, "It must be that chip!"

"Chip?" Miwa asked, "What chip?"

"I put a chip in it that I found in the military junkyard," said Donnie, "I think that might be what's upgrading the nin-pod."

"Who cares what it is? It's awesome!" Mikey cheered into the night.

Miwa was about to question Donnie about the chip he used in the nin-pod further, but Leo interrupted by saying, "Will you guys keep it down?! We're ninjas. We move swiftly and, most importantly, silently."

"Uh, Leo, you might wanna..." Miwa started to say, but Leo cut her off.

"I mean it, sis!" Leo snapped, "We need to be quiet'"

"I know ninjas are quiet," said Miwa, "But you're heading right for... "

"Then you should know to keep it down!" said Leo.

Suddenly, Leo screamed as he fell off of the roof and straight through the glass roof of another building. Leo found himself running along several large wooden crates and into a bee hive. Finally, he ran out the window and tumbled down the fire escape until he landed in a pile of trash.

His siblings rushed to check on him and found no serious injuries. There were a few bruises here and there, but nothing to worry about. Good thing he had his skate gear on, or it could have been worse.

"I was trying to tell you to watch out for that drop," said Miwa.

"Guess I should've been paying attention," said Leo.

Mikey was about to make a joke when he saw something that made him ask, "Who's that guy?"

The others looked in the direction Mikey was looking and saw a man in makeshift battle armor walking down the street. He did not seem to notice the teens as he walked past the alley they were hiding in.

"I don't know," said Raph, "But he needs a beat down."

"Hang on, Raph," said Leo, stopping his brother, "We don't know that he's doing anything wrong. For all we know, he could be on his way to... church... or a book club meeting."

Miwa shot her younger twin an annoyed look and said, "Really, Leo? In powered battle armor?"

Leo glared at his older sister and said, "Look, the point is, we can't just jump any random person we see just because of how they're dressed. Here's what we'll do, we'll tail him and find out what he's up to. If it turns out he is doing something wrong, we'll stop him."

The others nodded in agreement and quietly followed the man in armor. They followed him all the way to the back of an office building and watched him use a flamethrower to try to melt the lock. Deciding that the man needed to be stopped, Leo led his siblings and snuck up behind the man.

When the man's flamethrower died on him, he tried to forcibly pry open the still locked door. The sight was enough to make them feel a little bad for the guy.

"This is kinda sad," said Donnie.

"Yeah, I don't know if we should pound him or buy him an ice cream cone," said Mikey.

Not wanting to waste time, Leo stepped forward and said, "Halt, villain!" Which got the man to stop what he was doing.

"Halt villain?" Raph asked, "When did we start talking like that?"

"We're heroes," said Leo, "That's how heroes talk."

"Yeah, on cartoons," said Miwa.

"Prepare to face the wrath of my powered..." The man started to say. But when he turned to face his opponents, he was surprised, "What the-? You're just a bunch of kids!"

"Oh, we're more than just a bunch of kids," said Leo, and then he struck a heroic pose and declared, "We're the Champions of Justice!"

Raph smacked himself in the forehead and said, "Sometimes you embarrass me."

"Never mind that," said Miwa, "Let's get him."

The teens nodded and charged at the man in armor. Mikey stopped for a second only to put away the nin-pod, and then he joined in as well.

The man tried to punch Leo, but he dodged and tripped his opponent. Donnie took the chance to pull some wires from the battle armor, just in case there were hidden weapons. The man was about to hit back when Miwa tripped him and caused him to stumble backwards into a window and set off the alarm. The kids freaked out about the cops coming and quickly moved to grab the man. Raph opened the dumpster and signaled for his siblings to throw him in.

"Do we have to?" Donnie asked, "The whole dumpster thing kind of gives me grade school flashbacks."

"Think of it this way, little brother, he was trying to break into that building, which is a crime," said Leo, "We're not bullying a helpless kid, we're stopping a criminal."

"I guess when you put it that way it's alright," said Donnie, stilling not liking throwing someone into the trash.

Together, Miwa, Leo, Donnie, and Mikey picked the man up and threw him in the dumpster and closed it just he threatened to get revenge. The teens quickly escaped just before the police showed up and ran straight home.

Upon arrival at the antique store, Donnie turned off the burglar alarm and waited until everyone was inside before turning it back on. They all snuck quietly through the house to head for their rooms.

"Oh boy, that was close," Miwa whispered. She looked at her watch and saw the time, "And look, it's 2 am!"

"And both mother and father are still asleep," Mikey whispered, "This is epic!"

"It's not epic!" said Leo, "What we did was both reckless and stupid!"

"I agree," said Miwa, "We are _not_ doing that again."

"I don't see what the big deal is," said Raph with a shrug, "We got out and stomped a sleaze ball."

"And that was a one-time thing," said Leo, "Come on, We better get to bed and try to get at least _some_ sleep before school."

Obeying their brother, Raph, Miwa, Donnie, and Mikey all went to their rooms and changed into their pajamas. As he and Donnie were getting ready to sleep, Mikey noticed the whole in his pants pocket and the missing music player. He inwardly started to panic as he thought about how Donnie might react if he found out he lost it. What he did not know was that back at the scene of the fight, a certain someone else found and it and figured out how to use it to his advantage.

* * *

The next day in Roosevelt High School, a teacher by the name of Mr. Andrews was giving a lesson on the Trojan war when he suddenly heard snoring in the classroom. Everyone turned their heads and saw Raphael Kurama sleeping with his hand rested on his cheek. Mr. Andrews walked over to Raph's desk with a thick book in hand. Once he was right in front of Raph's desk Mr. Andrews lifted the book up and slammed it hard on the desk. The result was a bang loud enough to wake the dead, or a sleeping teenager.

Raph almost instantly out of his seat and screamed, "Mutants!"

Next thing Raph knew, everyone else in class was laughing at him and he looked up to see his teacher looking furiously at him. Raph now felt quite embarrassed.

"Do I bore you, Raphael?" Mr. Andrews asked.

"Well, kinda," said Raph.

In response, Mr. Andrews glared at Raph and said, "Very well, smart-aleck, you can go to the principal's office instead."

Raph frowned at the suggestion, but then stood up from his desk and headed towards the door. As he walked down the hall, Raph cursed in his head about his teacher being a jerk. When he finally reached the principal's office Raph opened the door and was greeted by quite the surprise, all four of his siblings were already there.

"You guys are here too?"

"Yeah," said Leo.

"Fell asleep in class?" Raph asked, taking a seat next to Mikey.

"Yup," said Mikey.

"Same here," said Raph.

The principal looked sternly at the teens and said, "I must I'm very disappointed in you five. You should all be ashamed of yourselves."

In response, the five teens looked down in shame.

The principal sighed and added, "To be honest, this kind of behavior is no surprise when it comes to Raphael and Michelangelo. But, Miwa, Leonardo, and Donatello, I'm surprised at you. Especially you, Donatello, a modeled student like you falling asleep in class. It's just not like you."

"We're sorry, sir," said Leo, "None of us slept very last night."

The principal thought for a minute, and then told the teens, "Alright, I'll let you all off with a warning this time. But if it ever happens again, I may have to call your parents."

"Again, we're sorry," said Leo.

"You don't have to worry," said Miwa.

"It'll be fine," said Raph, with a yawn.

"It won't happen again," said Donnie, tiredly.

Mikey let out a yawn and almost fell out of his chair. Thankfully, his siblings were there to catch him and wake him up. Mikey instantly smiled widely at the principal, hoping that would show how innocent he was.

"Good," said the principal, "Now, why don't you all get back to class?"

The teens all nodded in agreement and left the office to go back to their classes. The whole way back, they were counting their blessings that the principal did not call their parents.

* * *

After school, the Hamato teens headed home to do their homework and train. Upon arrival at the antique store, the kids had to enter through the back door so as not to get in the way of their mother and the costumers. Yoshi had already gone down to the lair earlier, so the teens had the place to themselves.

While everyone was doing their homework, Mikey got bored, so he reached for the remote to turn on the TV and watch something.

He almost had it when Leo snapped, "Mikey! Mother said no TV! We're grounded!"

Mikey simply rolled his eyes and said, "What mother and father don't know can't hurt us."

Miwa grabbed the remote first and said, "Alright, but it has to be news or history."

"Aww man!" Mikey whined, "That stuff's boring!"

"You might like it if you give it a chance," said Donnie.

Miwa then pressed the button on the remote to turn the TV on. Once she turned it onto the Channel 6 news, she and her brothers listened to the anchor talk about current events. And then his tone changed to startled.

"We just received breaking news about a maniac in a robot suit on a rampage!" said the anchor, getting the attention of the teens. "Here's some shocking footage of the robot suit man viciously attacking the TCRI office complex in Brooklyn."

The screen changed from the news room to a video of a robot attacking an office and frightening innocent workers. When the robot turned around, the teens were shocked to see the man that they had beaten up the night before.

"I will have my revenge!" the robot suit man declared.

"Who-who are you?" a man asked.

"You'll never know," said robot suit man, in a scary voice, "I'm the thing that haunts your nightmares! I'm the nameless shadow who-"

Before he could finish, the man who had asked who he was and asked, "Baxter?"

"No," said the robot suit man.

"Baxter Stockman?" the man asked again.

"No," robot suit man repeated, trying to deny his true identity.

The other man crawled out from under his desk, smiling, and called to his coworkers, "Hey, everybody, it's Baxter Stockman!"

Raph tried hard not to laugh at the name. "Baxter Stockman? What kind of name is that?"

Back to the video, a voice off camera asked Baxter Stockman, "Is this because I fired you?"

"That copy machine was already broken when-" Baxter started to say, and changed his voice and said, "I don't know what you're talking about."

Leo simply raised an eyebrow and asked, "How did he upgrade his armor so fast? We just fought this guy last night and his armor didn't even compare to the ones we see in video games."

On the TV, Stockman continued his rampage. As he attacked, Miwa noticed that there was something familiar on his armors chest area and told Leo to quickly rewind the show. Leo did so and paused the shot Miwa told him to. It was a close up of the armor and on the chest area was what looked like the nin-pod.

"Hey!" said Raph, "That looks like the nin-pod! How did he get ahold of that?"

Mikey scratched the back of his head and said, "I might've dropped that during the fight."

"What?!" Donnie asked, "How do you drop something like that and not realize it?"

"It's not my fault!" said Mikey, "What do you think I just left it there on purpose?"

Donnie got really mad and was about to say something back, but Leo got in the way and said, "Calm down, you two. This isn't helping."

"Leo's right," said Raph, "Besides, something's not adding up. How does the nin-pod being attached to the armor have anything to do with the upgrades?"

Miwa thought back to last night and remembered that Donnie mentioned something about a chip. Donnie meanwhile got the sense that he might soon be in trouble and started sneaking away.

"You know, Donnie started telling me that he put a chip in the nin-pod," said Miwa. She then noticed Donnie trying to sneak away and called, "Hamato Donatello, you stop right there. Explain to our brothers what you did to the nin-pod."

Donnie gulped and told the family, "When we were scrounging around the military junkyard, I found an advanced A.I. microchip made from self-esembled chain-lengthed copolymers. I put it in the nin-pod."

Ralph's eyes widened in shock and he shouted, "Are you telling us that you put a piece of military technology into a music player?! What were you thinking?!"

Donnie looked down in shame and said, "I didn't think some nutcase was gonna use it for evil."

"So, let me get this straight," said Leo, "The A.I. chip is upgrading Stockman's armor the same way it upgraded the nin-pod?"

"Yes," said Donnie, "And if it keeps going, there's no telling how powerful he'll get."

Leo then turned to the others and said, "Guys, this has gone way too far. We have to tell father what happened. Maybe he can help somehow."

"Are you kidding, Leo?" Raph asked, "Do you know what he'll do if he finds out that we turned some wakko into a super villain? We need to take care of this ourselves."

"Raph's right," said Donnie, "We have to track Stockman down and get the nin-pod back. After all, we beat him once, surely we can beat again."

Miwa, Leo, and Mikey thought about what their brothers said and then agreed that they were right. They agreed to go their training and then sneak out later that night to find Stockman and the nin-pod.

* * *

Later, after Shen and Yoshi went to sleep, the teens snuck out of the house the same way they did the night before only this time they stopped by the lair to gear up before searching for Stockman's hideout. Using their tracking skills, the ninja teens were able to track Stockman to an old abandoned building. Upon arrival, they saw Stockman in his armor talking to himself and trying to come up with a good villain name; unfortunately, all of his choices were very ridiculous. It took all of their ninja training to keep from laughing at him while they quietly surrounded him.

They got closer and closer until, finally, Mikey could no longer hold in his laughter and started snickering at Stockman. This caused Stockman to look up in surprise and find himself surrounded by ninjas.

"Who the heck are you?" Stockman asked, "And what are you doing here?"

"Nobody wants to hurt you, Stockman," said Leo, with Raph side noting that he did, "We just want the thing in the center of your armor."

"Just hand it over and you won't get hurt," said Miwa.

"Give up my source of power? And get beat up and thrown in a dumpster again?" said Stockman, "I don't think so."

Donnie glared at Stockman and snapped, "It's not _your_ source of power, it's _my_ creation! And it's not supposed to be used that way!"

Stockman simply smirked at the ninja teens and said, "Well, it's _mine_ now. If you want this, you'll have to take it from me."

Raph then whipped out his sais and said, "Sounds good to me."

Raph charged ahead and attempted to kick Stockman in the face, only for Stockman to punch him really hard with his robot fist. The blow was so powerful that Raph was sent flying backwards into the wall. Leo, Donnie, and Mikey attempted to surround Stockman and attack him at the same time while Miwa tended to the fallen Raph. Mikey and Donnie each attacked from either side of Stockman, only he saw them coming and knocked them both into the wall. Leo managed to slice of both of Stockman's robot arms, unfortunately they grew right back. Part of the sliced snuck up behind Leo and clamped itself onto his head.

As Leo ran around with the robot part on his head, Miwa glared at Stockman and yelled, "Hey! You can't do that to Ryu!"

She then charged at Stockman with her tanto sword at the ready, knowing that her tessen might not cut it this time; unfortunately, Stockman that coming and grabbed Mikey. He then held him up like in front of himself a shield. He gave Miwa a look as if he was daring her to attack him while he was holding Mikey. Miwa growled at Stockman while looking for a way to strike him without hurting Mikey. She also had to worry about Leo, who's robot head was shooting lasers at Raph and Donnie.

"We'll handle Ryu!" Raph called, "You save Naoto!"

With that, he and Donnie led Leo away leaving Miwa to save Mikey from Stockman. Miwa used her agility to dodge Stockman's attacks, but could not get a blow in because every time she tried he would hold Mikey in front of her like a shield.

It was no better for Raph and Donnie who had to dodge lasers. Finally, Donnie got the idea to use a big sheet of glass to reflect the laser fire back at the robot on Leo's head, freeing their brother.

Stockman, meanwhile, was having fun messing with Miwa by using Mikey as his shield against her attacks. It was looking hopeless for her and Mikey until Leo charged Stockman from behind and made him drop Mikey. Luckily, Raph caught Mikey in midair and they both landed safely on the ground. Miwa smiled at her brothers rejoining her and then glared at Stockman. All five teens charged at Stockman at once while he in turn charged back.

The next thing the teens knew, Stockman had them all in his robot hand. He laughed as he walked outside holding the teens. He found a dumpster and smiled as he slammed the ninja teens inside; it was becoming hard for Donnie to not have a flashback to fifth grade right now. The teens all looked up at Stockman, who smiled in triumph as he started to taunt them.

"Little fools!" Stockman declared, "Did you _really_ think you could defeat _me_?"

"Well, yeah," said Mikey.

"What's wrong with you?!" Miwa snapped, "What kind of nutcase uses a kid as a human shield?!"

"And where do you get off terrorizing people?!" Leo added, "They did nothing to deserve that!"

Stockman looked angrily at the ninja teens in the dumpster after Leo said that. "Nothing? You really think they did nothing?! They deserved everything they got for the way they treated me! They laughed at me and treated me like a nobody!" Stockman angrily yelled, "All my life people have laughed at me and treated me like I was nothing. The other kids in school, my coworkers, even the woman who fixes the copy machine. How was I supposed to know you don't pour toner in the top?!"

Hearing Stockman's story was almost made the teens pity him. Not enough to overlook the fact that he scared a bunch of people and tried to kill them. It also made Donnie wonder if he would have turned out like that if he did not have his family.

"But when they behold the power of this suit, they won't be laughing anymore," Stockman added with a wicked smile, "They'll tremble in terror!"

Suddenly, Stockman's suit glowed red and grew at a rapid pace. The teens all watched with their eyes widened in fear as the suit grew in size and weaponry.

"Wh-what's happening?" Leo asked, looking at Donnie for some kind of answer.

"Stockman and the nin-pod," Donnie said, his voice filled with fear, "They're merging. They're becoming one single entity."

"The Stockman-pod," Mikey said, giving Stockman a new nickname.

Once the transformation was complete, Stockman's suit now looked bigger and more monstrous than it did before. Seeing that they could not beat him the way they were now, the ninja teens frantically jumped out of the dumpster and ran for their lives. Stockman was not willing to let them get away so easily and chased after them to destroy them.

"Stockman-pod's right on top of us!" Mikey screamed.

"Stop calling him that! That's a stupid name!" Raph snapped.

"Guys, split up!" said Leo, "He can't chase all of us!"

"No way!" said Mikey, "He's gonna follow _me_!"

"Why would he follow you?" Leo asked.

"They _always_ follow _me_!" said Mikey.

"Stop being paranoid and run!" yelled Miwa.

"Alright, break!" yelled Leo.

On Leo's order, each of the team broke formation. First Raph ran into an alley, Donnie ran into the next one and Leo ran into the third, leaving Miwa and Mikey. The two found a fork in the road and split up in either direction. Stockman was just about to chase after Mikey when Miwa got his attention, so he chased after her. Mikey saw this and tried to think of a way to save his sister until he spotted a passing pizza delivery boy. Mikey took the pizza from the delivery bot and headed straight for Stockman. Stockamn was right on top of Miwa when Mikey appeared in front of her, took the pizzas out of the boxes and threw them in Stockman's face. Stockman removed the pizzas from his face but growled when he found Mikey and Miwa gone along with the other ninjas.

* * *

After finally escaping Stockman, the ninja teens trecked back to the lair to remove their gear and patch up their wounds. They thought they were in the clear until they were greeted by their waiting parents.

"Ah! Father! Mother!" said Leo in surprise.

"And where have you been?" Yoshi asked, "You were all supposed to be in bed."

"Here," Raph lied, "We couldn't sleep so we decided to train."

"How did you get so hurt?" Yoshi asked.

"Happened during training," said Miwa, "We must've gotten a little too rough."

"You're story sounds quite convincing," said Shen, to the relief of the ninja teens. Then her expression changed and she added, "Except for the fact that you usually train in gi's and not in full ninja gear."

The ninja teens froze when realized that their story would not work. They tried to think of another story to tell their parents, but nothing they came up with made sense. Finally, they had no choice but to tell the truth. So, they told their parents everything from sneaking out all the way to their escape that very night.

"Very resourceful using food as a weapon, Michelangelo," said Yoshi, "But I am still very disappointed in you all. The first rule of being a ninja is do no harm! Unless you mean to do harm, then do lots of harm!"

"More importantly, you lied to us and disobeyed us again," said Shen.

"You're right," said Leo, "I guess we did make a mess of things."

"And that's why we have to fix this," said Raph.

"I agree," said Yoshi, "You must stop this Stockman fellow before his vengeful rampage causes irreversible damage."

"But how?" Miwa asked, "He's so powerful."

"And he keeps getting stronger by the minute," said Donnie.

"I could smash his face!" said Raph, pounding his fist.

"Brute force is not answer," said Yoshi, "You must rely on your ninja training."

"I hate burst your bubble, father, but ninjas never had go up against guys in armor," said Mikey.

"Yes they did," said Miwa, "Remember the stories? Ninjas have fought men in armor many times; just not powered by technology."

"Even so, what the ninjas did in the old days might be helpful now," said Leo, then looked back at his father and asked, "What was their secret?"

"They understood that you do fight the armor, you might the man inside," Yoshi explained.

From that information, the teens started forming a plan to defeat Stockman. They just hoped that it would work.

* * *

The teens waited on top of a roof for Stockman to show up. Leo was positive that his plan would work. The others were just hoping nobody would get hurt.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Donnie asked.

"Remember what we were told. Don't fight the armor fight the guy inside," said Leo, "And can't think of any better way to fight Stockman while he's inside his armor."

"Yeah, but still-" Donnie started say until Mikey caught site of something in the distance.

"Here he comes!" Mikey called, "Operation Sting is a go!"

Leo smirked and said, "Perfect. Mikey, get into position and jump in on my signal."

"You got, captain," said Mikey, and then he leapt towards the nearby warehouse.

"I'm still not sure this is a good idea," said Donnie.

Raph simply shrugged and said, "Ah, you worry too much." Then he turned to the street and yelled at the top of his lungs, "Hey, Stinkman! Come and get us, you scrawny pea-brain!"

Stockman heard Raph and growled in anger. He looked over and saw the ninjas from earlier waving at him from a rooftop in the distance. The sight of them made him roar and charge towards them at full speed. The ninja teens unsheathed their weapons for battle. Stockman slammed his robot fist on the roof to crush the teens, but they jumped out of the way just in time. Suddenly, he opened a new compartment in his armor and revealed several missiles loaded and ready to launch.

Leo's eyes widened in shock and he screamed, "Hit the deck!"

On Leo's order, the team dove in several directions to avoid the missiles just they were launched. Raph tried to get Stockman from behind, but Stockman knocked him down at the last second. Miwa tried only to be met with a similar result. Leo and Donnie attempted to attack at the same time, only to be knocked over the side of the building. They that they might fall to their deaths, but Raph managed to save them at the last second. After Raph pulled Leo and Donnie up, Miwa joined them to check on them and then Stockman cornered them at the edge.

As he loomed over the ninja teens, Stockman laughed and asked, "Any last words?"

Leo looked up at Stockman and boldly said, "Just one. Bee's!"

Stockman raised an eyebrow and asked, "Bee's?"

"Bee's!" yelled a new voice.

Stockman turned around just in time to see Mikey zip lining down a telephone wire holding a huge bee hive in him hand. Before Stockman could escape, Mikey threw the hive right at Stockman's face and the bee's got inside of the armor and stung Stockman. Once the bee hive was removed, Stockman's face was covered in stings. Other than being all stung, he appeared to be well enough.

Taking advantage of Stockman's puffed up state, the teens took turns delivering a powerful blow to his armor. Once he was finally down, Leo walked right up to Stockman's chest, stabbed the nin-pod, and pulled it out. The result was the armor glowed red and then the glow stopped, signifying that the armor was now useless.

Stockman climbed out of the armor weakly and was greeted by five angry ninja teens.

Donnie looked over at Raph and said, "I guess he's not allergic to bee stings."

"And you were worried he was," said Raph.

"You were actually worried about me?" Stockman asked.

Donnie looked at Stockman and said, "Don't misunderstand me. It's just against my nature to kill."

Leo then looked down at Stockman and said, "But that doesn't mean we're not entitled to a little payback."

"And I know just the way," said Raph.

The ninja teens then grabbed Stockman and threw him in the nearest dumpster. They closed the lid and laughed all the way back home.

* * *

Back at home, Yoshi and sat down and listened as their children told them how their mission went. Once they finished, Yoshi was very pleased.

"I am very proud of you all, my children," said Yoshi, "You showed great wisdom and skill in defeating Stockman."

"And you saved many innocent people," said Shen, "And for that, I am proud as well."

"Does this mean we're not grounded anymore?" Leo asked.

Yoshi and Shen looked at each other and Yoshi said, "Yes."

The teens smiled until Shen added, "After you all clean up the dojo."

The teens groaned but got up to do what they were told. As they started removing the rugs from the dojo so they could clean them, the teens made a vow to never try to sneak out while grounded again.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** So, what'd you folks think? Worth that wait? Be honest.


	8. The Mutant Jewel Thief

**Author's Note:** This chapter was inspired by my sister. She said that Snakeweed sounded a lot like Gollum from "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy.

* * *

 **The Mutant Jewel Thief**

As Shen walked home with groceries in her arms, all she was focused on was getting home and cooking up the dinner she had planned for the night, beef stir fry. She was so lost in thought that she did not notice the uneven stones in the sidewalk and tripped. The fall caused her to drop her bag and her groceries went flying. Shen picked herself up and started picking up her groceries and putting them back in the bag. As she reached to pick up the last item to put it back in the bag, Shen's ring slipped right off of her finger and landed dangerously close to the grate.

Shen saw this and crawled over to try to grab the ring. She slowly reached out her hand and inched her way towards it. She was just inches away from the ring when it slipped through and fell down into the sewer. She gasped when that happened.

"Oh no," said Shen, shocked that her wedding ring was now in the sewer.

* * *

Back at home, Miwa was running the store while Donnie helped Raph and Mikey with their homework. Leo was watching Space Heroes on T.V. while Yoshi was almost home from training in the lair, hoping to get back to his full strength again.

Miwa was just getting ready to close shop when Shen came in looking sad. After changing the sign to closed, Miwa followed her mother upstairs to their home.

Once she arrived, Shen started putting the groceries away. Her other children and husband had noticed her sadness as well and were concerned.

"What is the matter, Shen?" Yoshi asked.

Shen put the beef in the fridge and said, "I lost my wedding ring on the way home."

The family got concerned when they heard the news.

"Did the Purple Dragons steal it?" Raph asked, "Cause if they did-"

"No, Raphael, that's not what happened," said Shen, "It fell off when I was picking up the groceries after I dropped them. I tried to get it back, but it fell threw a grate into the sewer."

Leo smiled sympathetically at his mother and said, "If that's all, then we'll go down to the sewer and get it back."

"Are you sure about that?" Shen asked, "What if something happens down there."

"No worries," said Donnie, "We've all been training down there for eleven years. We know those sewers like the backs of our hands."

Shen was still unsure about letting her children go down into the sewer to find her ring. However, it did seem like her children knew what they were doing. After all, Donnie did say that they had been training down there for ten years and knew their way around.

"Well, I guess it's alright since you know you're way around the sewer," said Shen, "Just be careful down there."

"We will," said Leo, "All we need is the street you were on when you lost it. We'll search from there."

* * *

The teens descended into the sewer and made their way to where their mother had told them she had lost her ring. They split up and started looking around for the ring in different places. Nearly five minutes went by and they had no luck. Suddenly, the teens heard a loud hissing sound coming from the sewer tunnels.

"Did you guys hear that?" Miwa asked.

"I don't like the sound of that," said Leo.

No sooner had Leo said that when a familiar plant like mutant monster came into view. And he did not look at all pleased to see five teenagers in his sewer tunnel.

"Oh boy," said Raph, nervousness in his voice, "Of all the characters we had to run into down here."

Snakeweed hissed and glared down at the teenagers in front of him. They in turn backed away slowly and got ready to run away. Donnie then noticed something shiny hanging from Snakeweed's vine. Upon inspection, Donnie realized exactly what that was.

"Guys, he's got the ring!" said Donnie.

Mikey looked up at the weed mutant and demanded, "Hand over the ring, Stinkweed!"

In response, Snakeweed hissed at them and snapped, "No! It's mine!"

"It belongs to our mother!" said Miwa, "If you don't return it to us, then we'll have to take it back by force!"

Snakeweed hissed at the teens again and swung his claw at them. Luckily, they all managed to jump out of the way just in time to dodge.

Raph glared at the plant mutant and said, "Alright, if you wanna do it the hard way, then that's how we'll do it!"

Raph charged at Snakeweed with two old metal pipes in his hands intending to strike him in the head. However, before he could land a hit, Snakeweed caught him and threw him across the tunnel into Donnie. He then took off running.

"After him!" Leo yelled, and then he and the others ran after Snakeweed.

As Snakeweed ran through the sewers, he looked back and saw the teens chasing him. He made a sharp turn into a side tunnel and the teens followed him. They all leapt forward to try to grab the ring, but he moved out of the way at the last second. As a result, the five dove right into a pool of raw sewage. When they resurfaced, the teens looked around but found no sign of Snakeweed.

As they looked around, the teens could hear Snakeweed's voice echoing all through the sewers, mocking them; and they could swear that they heard him say, "My precious!"

Defeated, the five teenagers got out of the water and started walking out of the sewer back home. Along the way, they started trying to think of how they were going to tell their parents what happened.

* * *

Back at the antique store, Shen and Yoshi were waiting for their children to come home. They were starting to wish that they had not gone down to the sewer to retrieve the ring. When they heard a knock on the door, Yoshi answered it and saw April outside.

"Hi, Mr. Kurama," said April.

"Hello, April," said Yoshi, "What brings you here this evening?"

"I just wanted to come over and see Miwa and the boys," said April, "Are they here?"

"No," said Yoshi, "But they should be back soon. Why don't you come in and wait for them?"

"Thanks. I'd like that," said April, and then walked inside with Yoshi.

"Oh, and you can just call me Yoshi and my wife Shen," said Yoshi.

"Okay, Yoshi," said April.

After the door was closed, Shen smiled at the house guest and said, "Oh, April, how nice to see you. How are you holding up?"

April sat down on the couch and said, "Alright, I guess. I've been looking for leads on the Kraang, but I haven't had much luck. How are things with Miwa and the boys?"

"They've been stopping the Kraang's plans, but haven't found any evidence of their bigger plot," said Shen.

"Where are they right now?" April asked, "It's a little early for patrol."

"Shen lost her ring in the sewer, so they went to find it," said Yoshi.

"Aren't you worried that they might get lost down there?" April asked.

"They have been training down there for eleven years," said Yoshi, "They know they're way around. I am confident that my children will be fine."

"Okay, If you say so," said April, and then she smelled something fowl in the air that made her recoil in disgust, "What is that smell?"

She, Yoshi, and Shen looked over and saw Miwa and her brothers standing in the doorway dripping and looking defeated. Upon seeing April in the house, Donnie hid his face in his shirt out of embarrassment.

Mikey smiled at his friend and said, "Hi, April."

"Hi, Mikey," said April, looking puzzled, "What happened to you guys?"

"There was a problem with retrieving the ring," said Miwa, "Which we will tell you about after we clean up."

With that, they all trudged to their rooms to change out of their sewage drenched clothes. Next, they took turns washing up. Once they all were finished, the five siblings gathered in the living room and explained what happened to them.

"While we were searching the sewer for mother's ring, we ran into Snakeweed," said Leo, "And he was not the least bit happy that we were there."

"What?!" Shen screamed at the news, "He didn't hurt you, did he?"

Raph shook his head and said, "No more than usual."

"Also, Snakeweed found the ring first and didn't want to give it back," said Leo, "We tried to get from him, but he tricked us into diving right into raw sewage."

"Oh, sorry to hear that," said April.

"You guys should've seen Snakeweed," said Mikey, "He was, like, crazy in love with mother's ring."

"It reminded me a little of Gollum from the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy," said Donnie.

Raph looked at his immediate younger brother and said, "Nerd."

Donnie looked annoyed at Raph for saying that. And then he turned to the rest of the family and said, "Well, in any case, we're gonna try to get the ring back again after we figure out where Snakeweed is."

"No, don't worry about it," said Shen, "I don't want you risking your lives over a ring. I'll just replace it."

"What?" Miwa asked, "Why not?"

"Yeah, the whole point of being a ninja was to help people," said Leo, "And I'm pretty sure that getting your mother's ring back from a mutant counts as helping people."

"I agree with your mother," said Yoshi, "One can never predict the consequences of battle. Every fight has the potential to stir a hornet's nest. A single ring is not worth the risk. It is best to just let this one go."

"Father, it's Snakeweed," said Leo, "We've fought him before."

"Twice counting now," said Yoshi, "And both times you barely escaped with your lives."

"The first time we were unfamiliar with that type of enemy," said Raph, "And the second time we had no weapons and no plan. But I think we can do it this time once we're more prepared."

Before Yoshi could argue with his children, they all got up from the couch and headed out the door. Yoshi sighed in defeat and said, "Teenagers."

"Well, what're you gonna do?" April asked.

"I guess all we _can_ do is hope that they make it home safely," said Yoshi.

April nodded in agreement, while Shen inwardly prayed that her children would be safe.

* * *

After gearing up at the lair, the teens ventured back into the sewer in search of Snakeweed. They went back where they had last fought him and started looking for clues.

"Okay, we know Snakeweed was here," said Leo, "We just need to figure out where he went."

"I think that was already obvious, fearless leader," said Raph.

"Hey, guys, I think I found something!" Mikey called. The others rushed over to see what he found. Mikey turned around smiling and held up an old looking soldier toy and said, "Pretty cool, right?"

Raph growled in annoyance and shook his fist, Leo smacked his forehead, Donnie groaned, and Miwa made an annoyed face.

"Focus, Mikey!" Raph snapped, smacking Mikey in the head, "Pay attention! We need to find Snakeweed and get mother's ring back, not pick up trash!"

With that, everyone went back to searching for clues; Mikey grumbling about Raph being a jerk while he pocketed his new found soldier toy.

"I think I got something here!" Donnie called from a tunnel. The others joined him and found a trail of purple slime on the ground. "Looks like Snakeweed's bleeding. He may have cut himself after he escaped."

"This is just like with the Kraang truck," said Miwa, "We can follow the trail straight to him."

"And then we can get the ring back!" Mikey cheered.

Mikey started doing a victory dance, but stopped when Leo said, "Save it for after we get the ring back."

"'Kay," said Mikey.

"Alright, team, let's move," said Leo, and then he and the others started walking through the tunnel following the trail of slime.

Unknown to them, a group of Foot Clan ninjas had seen them walking through the tunnel and decided to follow them. Along the way, Donnie found something on the ground and picked up to put in his shuriken pouch.

The teens followed the trail until they finally found Snakeweed asleep. As he slept, the teens spotted the ring where it had been before, attached to Snakeweed's vine.

"Let's do this," said Leo, "Quietly. We don't wanna wake him up."

The others nodded and quietly snuck over to the sleeping mutant. Miwa was the closest, so reached forward to grab the ring. The other kept an eye on Snakeweed and made sure he stayed asleep. Miwa inched herself closer and closer to the ring. At one point, the vine brushed against her nose and almost made her sneeze. Luckily, Donnie rushed over to stop it just in time. He then noticed that he was close enough to the ring to easily take from the mutant, which he did. He gave his siblings a thumbs-up and they all gave him a thumbs-up back.

They quickly and quietly got away from Snakeweed and were just about to leave when the group of Foot Clan ninjas appeared in front of them. This made the teens jump in surprise.

"Aw, snap!" Mikey exclaimed, and then quickly covered his mouth.

No sooner had Mikey yelled that word when Snakeweed's eyes opened and he woke up. He looked over and saw the ninjas in his lair and hissed. He then growled when he saw the ring in Donnie's hand. Donnie did not want anything to happen to the ring so he put it in his shuriken pouch for the time being.

Raph glared at Mikey and said, "Nice going, Naoto."

"Sorry," said Mikey.

"This is no time to play the blame game," said Leo as he unsheathed his swords, "We've gotta get out of here, and the only way is either past these ninjas or through the ugly plant."

"You're right," said Miwa as she opened her tessen, "Kurogane, Tetsuo, and Naoto can take care of the Foots while you and I take the plant."

"Sounds like a good plan to me, Karai," said Raph as he whipped out his sai.

"Let's do this!" said Donnie as he pulled out his staff and spun it around.

"Booyakasha!" Mikey shouted as he spun his nunchucks.

On Mikey's yell, the older twins charged at Snakeweed while Raph and the younger twins charged at the Foot ninjas. Raph held off two of them while Mikey took on two more and Donnie did the same for the last two. Miwa and Leo held their own against Snakeweed by slashing at his vines every time he came at them. Snakeweed then caught sight of Donnie and remembered that he had the ring and glared.

Raph, Donnie, and Mikey were fighting off the Foot as best they could, but it was not easy. These guys were well trained and, by the looks of it, more experienced.

"Boy, these guys are really tough!" said Mikey.

"Keep fighting them!" said Raph, "It's the only way out of here!"

"You don't have to tell us twice!" Donnie called, blocking another attack. Suddenly, he felt something wrap around his waist and pull him away from the fight.

"Tetsuo!" Raph yelled after seeing that Snakeweed had caught Donnie in his vine.

He tried to run to rescue him, but two Foot ninjas got in his way. While Raph and Mikey continued to fight the Foot ninjas, Donnie was brought right up to Snakeweed and was close enough to see the plant mutant's death glare.

"Give me my precious!" Snakeweed demanded.

Donnie quickly tried to think of a way out of the mess. Finally, he got an idea. He smirked at the plant mutant and reached into his shuriken pouch. He pulled out the ring and said, "You want it, go get it!"

He threw the ring right at a Foot ninja, who caught it easily. Mikey was about to try to grab the ring from the Foot ninja, but Snakeweed threw Donnie into the wall and charged at the Foot ninjas himself. The others rushed over to check on their fallen brother and found it was hard for him to sit up by himself because the blow injured his back. This made them all really mad.

"Karai, take care of Tetsuo," Leo ordered, "Kurogane and Naoto, you're with me. We'll take care of Snakeweed."

"No!" yelled Donnie, "Let's just get out of here!"

"But the mission!" said Mikey.

"Forget it!" said Donnie, "Let's just go! We'll be killed if we don't get out of here!"

Leo wanted to fight with him, but he knew that his family's safety was more important than a ring. So, he simply nodded and helped Donnie onto his back, and then he and the others ran out of the tunnel together.

Once they were back at the lair, Leo set Donnie down on the couch to rest while Miwa got him a pillow. Raph and Mikey sat down next to Donnie and Raph started checking his injuries.

"Well, not as bad as it could've been," said Raph, "But I wouldn't push it too much for the next day or so."

"Aw man!" Mikey groaned, "All that and we didn't even get mother's ring back."

"Yeah, well, at least we didn't lose any siblings," said Leo.

"And don't be so sure about not getting mother's ring," said Donnie. His siblings looked confused at first, but then he reached into his shuriken pouch and pulled out their mother's wedding ring.

"You still have it?!" Miwa asked in shock, "But I saw you throw it at the Foot ninjas!"

"Nope," said Donnie, "That was a piece of costume jewelry I found along the way to Snakeweed's hideout. I couldn't tell you before because if I did Snakeweed would've heard and come after us again. It'll take him forever to realize that the one he has is a fake. Assuming he ever notices the 'Made in China' mark on the inside."

"Donnie, you are a genius," said Leo.

Donnie smiled and said, "I know."

* * *

Later, after changing back to their regular clothes, the teens returned home for some much needed rest and relaxation. Upon arrival, they returned Shen's wedding ring to her. She accepted it and then turned her attention to the injured Donnie. She had them had them set him down on the couch and had him lay on his stomach. While April got a heating back pad for Donnie, Yoshi decided to have a talk with his children.

"I hope you have learned, my children, that by choosing your battles poorly you created your own crisis," said Yoshi.

"Yeah, there's definitely some irony there," said Donnie from his spot on the couch.

"But at least we defeated the Foot ninjas," said Leo from his spot on the couch, "And we got mother's ring back."

"You did, and I thank you for that," said Shen, "But the most important thing is that you all came home safely. If I had lost any one of you, I don't know what I would've done. I have a favor to ask of you."

"What's is it?" said Miwa.

"Please, promise me that you will never endanger yourselves over a lost piece of jewelry again," said Shen.

"I promise," said Leo.

"I promise," said Donnie.

"I promise," said Miwa.

"I promise,," said Raph.

"Me too," said, Mikey.

"Thank you," said Shen happily.

Right after the teens made their promise, April came in with a heating pad in hand and said, "Okay, Donnie, I got your pad. Now lift up your shirt."

"What?" Donnie asked, blushing bright red.

"It has to touch your skin in order to work," said April, "Now, lift up your shirt and show your bareback."

Donnie did as he was told and lifted up his shirt to expose his bareback. April walked over to Donnie and placed the heating pad on his back. As this was happening, Donnie smiled like he was on cloud nine.

"How does that feel?" April asked.

"Nice," Donnie happily answered.

Mikey leaned over to his other siblings and whispered, "Looks like it turned out pretty good for Donnie."

As Mikey snickered, the others agreed that despite everything that happened, Donnie actually had it pretty good at the moment. He had April's undivided attention on him.

"You know what this calls for?" Mikey asked his family, "A victory dance!"

Right one cue, Mikey started dancing freestyle in the living while his family watched in amusement. Sometimes they did not know what to do with him.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** I hope this chapter was good. I put a lot of work into it. Please be honest with your opinions


	9. A Mutant Ate My Homework

**Author's Note:** This one is a filler and mostly meant to be funny. This one started out as joke, but once I started I couldn't stop. I hope it's good.

* * *

 **A Mutant Ate My Homework**

It was just a regular day like any other; the sun was shining, the birds were singing, and people in the street we're either heading to work or school. Five certain teenage siblings were just heading their usual way to school when suddenly; they heard the sound of a girl screaming in terror. They all looked across the street and saw the Purple Dragons pulling a pretty teenage blonde girl along with them into an alley.

"Oh no, She's in trouble!" Mikey declared, "I have to save her!"

"Don't go, Mikey!" Screamed Miwa in concern, "It's too dangerous! The Purple Dragons are too powerful!"

"And it looks like they might have dangerous weapons," said Raph.

"I can't just stand here and do nothing," said Mikey, "That poor girl needs me!"

With that, Mikey rushed across the street, ignoring his sibling's pleas for him not to go. After dodging oncoming cars, Mikey made it across the street and turned into the alley where he saw the Purple Dragons holding the girl hostage.

The leader, a slender man named Fong, stepped forward and asked Mikey, "What do you want, punk?"

"You and your goons had better let that girl go," said Mikey, "Or be prepared to face my wrath!"

The Purple Dragons simply laughed at the boy and Fong said, "If you want her, you'll have to fight us for her."

"Fine by me," said Mikey, with a smile, and then he charged at them and yelled, "Booyakasha!"

The Purple Dragons charged at Mikey to take him down. Once they did, however, Mikey easily blocked their attacks and defeated them using his amazing ninja skills. After the Purple Dragons were defeated, the pretty girl ran over to Mikey and hugged him.

"Oh, thank you so much for saving me from those awful Purple Dragons!" said the girl, "You're my hero!"

"Aww, it was nothing," said Mikey. The girl, in turn, gave Mikey a big kiss on his cheek, which made Mikey blush bright red.

Suddenly, one of the Purple Dragons charged at Mikey with a knife, which Mikey and the girl dodged just in time with a duck and combat roll. Unfortunately, the knife cut part of Mikey's backpack and some papers fell out as Mikey went rolling. Mikey noticed the rip in his bag and looked over to see the Purple Dragons picking up his fallen papers.

"Hey! Put those down! That's my homework!" Mikey yelled, "It's due today! Give it back!"

Fong seemed to be contemplating the idea for a bit, and then he held the papers in front of Mikey's face as if to return it. And then his face twisted into an evil grin and he tore Mikey's homework right down the middle.

Right after Fong tore up Mikey's homework, a voice shouted, "Stop! Stop! Stop! I don't wanna hear another word!"

As it turns, Mikey was in his math class room telling a story to his teacher, Mr. Digby. Mikey had homework due that day, but he failed to present said homework. When asked why, Mikey decided to tell that story; he even had a cut on his backpack to attempt to prove how real his tale was.

"Aww, come on, Mr. Digmire, I didn't even get to the part where the pretty girl agreed to go out with me," Mikey whined.

"First of all, my name is Mr. Digby," said Mr. Digby, "Second of all, I don't care about the next part of your unbelievable and made up story about why you don't have your homework."

"What?" Mikey asked, taken aback by the teacher's statement, "You don't believe me?"

"That's right, Michelangelo, I don't believe you," said Mr. Digby, "In fact, I highly doubt that anyone in this class believes you."

Everyone else in the class remained silent about the matter. Mikey's friend Jason was about to raise his hand to say that he believed Mikey, but stopped when Mr. Digby looked at him and said, "Besides Jason."

Jason put his hand down and frowned. Mr. Digby then looked back at Mikey and said, "It's pretty obvious to me that the reason you don't _have_ your homework is because you didn't _do_ your homework."

"But-" Mikey began to say, but was interrupted by the teacher.

"Michelangelo, I'd like to speak with you after class," said Mr. Digby.

"Yes, Mr. Dingbat," said Mikey, and then he headed to his desk.

"Digby!" The teacher shouted in annoyance.

Mikey simply shrugged and said, "Tomato-tomoto."

Once class was over, everyone else left, but Mikey stayed behind so that the teacher could have a talk with him. Mikey sat in a chair in front of Mr. Digby's desk and said teacher spoke to Mikey about the current situation.

"Look, Michelangelo, I don't know where you picked up this bad habit of making up ridiculous excuses for not having your homework, but I have had it," said Mr. Digby, "This is the third time this week alone you've shirked your homework and made up a wild story about why you don't have it."

"But that actually happened," said Mikey.

Mr. Digby let out an exasperated sigh and smacked himself in the forehead. Next he told Mikey, "I'm going to give you a chance to make up the homework and turn it in tomorrow."

"Thank you, sir," said Mikey.

"However, if you don't have it, I don't want to hear any stories about people or animals stealing or eating your homework," said Mr. Digby, "That means no more street gangs stealing and destroying your homework. No more stray dogs eating your homework. No more birds stealing your homework for their nests. And definitely no more escaped zoo animal stories."

"Guess you still don't think the zebra story was all that funny," said Mikey.

Mr. Digby shot his student an annoyed look and continued, "If you give any ridiculous excuses, you fail. Is that understood?"

"Yes," said Mikey.

"Good," said Mr. Digby, "Now, run along to your next class."

"Okay, Mr. Digger," said Mikey as he stood up to leave, "I'll bring in the homework tomorrow."

Mikey left the room and as he was heading out the door, his teacher caught up to him and said, "Digby!"

And then slammed the door behind him, which made Mikey jump in surprise.

* * *

Later at lunch, Mikey blew off to his siblings about what happened in math class. He told them everything from the teacher not believing his story to the teacher threatening to fail him if he tried to make up another excuse. His siblings were sympathetic enough, but mostly they were not surprised by the turn of events.

"He actually threatened to fail me," Mikey whined, grabbing his burger off his tray, "I still can't believe it."

As Mikey took a bite of his burger and chewed it, Raph leaned back in his chair and said, "Me neither. Who does that guy think he is, a teacher?"

"Thank you, Raph," said Mikey. And then he realized that Raph was being sarcastic and slumped as he said, "Oh, ha ha. You're hilarious, bro."

As Raph smiled in triumph, Donnie looked up from the book he was reading and said, "I know you're frustrated, Mikey, but I also understand where he's coming from."

"Dude!" Mikey whined, "You're supposed to be on my side, bro!"

"I'm not taking sides, Mikey," said Donnie, "I'm just saying that I understand how Mr. Digby feels."

"Me too," said Miwa, "A student shirking his homework a lot and making up ridiculous excuses for not having it has got to be more than a little annoying."

"That sounds a lot like what he said," said Mikey, "I still have no idea what the word "shirking" means."

"It means to not do something," said Donnie, "Which is what you've been doing a lot with your homework."

"And I think there's something else you should know, Mikey," said Leo, "A few days ago, I overheard Principal Barkley talking to mother and father about you. He said that if this stuff keeps up, it may affect your grades so badly that you might have to be held back."

The news made Mikey spit out his chocolate milk and scream, "What?!"

"Yeah," said Leo, "If you don't start taking your school work more seriously, you might have to repeat this grade."

"No way!" Mikey exclaimed, slamming the table, "I don't wanna be held back! I can't be stuck in class with a bunch of babies who wet themselves and cry for their mommies!"

The others looked confused and only stared at Mikey in silence for a few seconds taking in what he just said. Miwa eventually broke the silence.

"How far back do you think you're going to be held, kindergarten?" Miwa asked.

"Yeah, Mikey," said Donnie, "You'd just be repeating the grade you're already in. So most of your classmates would be the same age you are now, and none of your classmates now do that stuff you just mentioned."

Mikey frowned at his siblings and said, "You know what I mean."

"Not to worry, little brother, there is a simple fix for this little problem," said Raph.

"There is?" Mikey asked as his face lit up.

His siblings nodded and then said in unison, "Do your homework more often."

Mikey's smile turned into a frown as he sarcastically said, "Great advice,"

"And if you're having trouble with it, you know you can come to us for help," said Leo.

Mikey's smile returned and he said, "Thanks, guys."

* * *

After school, the teens agreed that they would do homework at the library before heading to the lair for training. During their time there, Mikey mostly sat at their table bored. At one point, Mikey noticed Donnie working on his work with ease and attempted to give him some of his own homework. It looked like it might work had it not been for the voice behind Mikey's back.

"Mikey!" a female voice scolded.

Mikey screamed and jumped in surprise. He turned around and saw April standing behind him and Donnie with her bag on her shoulder. Her arms were crossed across her chest and her face was twisted into a disapproving scowl. Donnie caught onto what his younger brother was up to and gave him the same look as he returned Mikey's homework to him.

"Hi, April," said Mikey, "You doing homework here too?"

"No," she said, "Just trying to find more evidence that might help me find my dad."

"That's cool," said Raph, "We're trying to help Mikey make up his homework from yesterday so he doesn't fail."

"You didn't do your homework last night?" April asked.

Mikey smiled and rubbed the back of his head as he answered, "I was training a lot and then we had patrol."

"And before both of those things he got distracted watching Crognard the Barbarian on T.V." said Raph.

"Hey!" Mikey snapped.

"His teacher, Mr. Digby, gave him a chance to make it up and turn it in tomorrow," said Leo. He then gave his youngest brother a look of disapproval and added, "Though, we forgot to tell him that it doesn't count to trick Donnie into doing it for him."

"It wouldn't have worked anyway," said Miwa, "Even you somehow managed to convince Mr. Digby that you knew how to do math like Donnie does, he'd figure it out when you present it in someone else's handwriting that you didn't do it yourself."

"Seriously?" Mikey asked.

"Yeah," said Leo, "You and Donnie have very noticeably different handwriting. Mr. Digby would see right through that."

"Wow," said Mikey, "This was embarrassing."

"Mikey, we said we'd help and we meant it," said Leo, "Just tell what it is you don't get and we'll explain it to you."

"Okay," said Mikey, "Thanks, Leo."

April smiled at the siblings and got ready to leave when she heard Donnie say, "Awe snap. Is it that time already?"

The others looked at Donnie and Miwa asked, "What's wrong?"

"I'm starting my new job at Dr. Rockwell's lab today," said Donnie. He started gathering up his books into his backpack and got up to leave, "Sorry, guys. If I don't get going now I'll be late."

"It's okay," said Miwa, "We understand. Don't worry, we've got Mikey taken care of."

"Thanks for understanding, guys," said Donnie, "I'll see you later."

"Hey, Donnie, you wanna walk out together," April asked, "I can go with you as far as the bus stop."

Donnie blushed bright red as he said, "Sure, April. I'd like that."

And with that, Donnie and April walked away and headed to the library entrance together, ignoring the silent teasing of Donnie's brothers and sister. Once Donnie and April were gone, the rest of the siblings continued to help Mikey finish up his homework. About three minutes later they had finally finished and we're ready to leave. Mikey had wanted to hang out with his friend Jason, so he left for his friends' homemade half-pipe to go skateboarding with him while the others went home.

The two boys spent their time together skating on the half-pipe, Jason with his pet gecko on his shoulder. As the two friends sat down for a break, Mikey told Jason about what happened after class.

"Man, that's bogus," said Jason, "Threatening to fail you? What a jerk."

"He said he'd do if I tried making up a ridiculous excuse," said, "I'm really just counting my blessings that he was nice enough to give me a chance to make the work at all. At least now that have it done he won't fail me."

"That's good," said Jason, taking a swig of his bottled water, "I still say he was overreacting a little."

"My siblings don't think so," said Mikey, leaning his back against the half-pipe. The gecko that Jason carried with him crawled over to Mikey and looked at him. Mikey smiled at the gecko and said, "Are you worried, Lars? Don't be. Everything's good. My homework's finished and ready to be turned in, and with no drama added onto it; unless something crazy happens like in my stories."

What the boys did not know was that they were being watched from a distance by a large shadowy figure. The figure grinned at them and decided that this was the perfect time to cause some trouble for fun. The figure wasted no time in jumping out from the shadows and landing in front of the boys. The boys freaked out at the sight of a giant spider mutant.

"Aw, look at the little babies playin' with their skateboards," said the spider mutant.

"Who the heck is this weirdo?" Jason asked as Lars crawled inside his shirt to hide from the spider mutant.

"A kid in black that knew kung-fu called me Spider Bytes," said the spider mutant, "And you know what? I kinda like it."

Mikey fought the urge to slug the mutant as he asked, "Are you sure the kid wasn't a _ninja_?"

The mutant rolled his eyes and said, "Whatever. Look, the point here is that I'm finding myself feeling a little bored and you two just so conveniently happened to be in the area."

Mikey and Jason inched away from the mutant and Mikey asked, "Where are you going with this?"

Spider Bytes grinned evilly at the boys and said, "I need something, or _someone_ , to practice my new moves on."

Understanding what Spider Bytes was implying, Mikey gulped and whispered to his friend, "Listen, Jason, get up slowly and follow me close."

Jason nodded and did as his friend said. Spider Bytes saw this and started walking towards the boys. He was just inches away from the boys when Mikey threw a rock at Spider Bytes' head, causing him to scream in pain.

"Run, Jason! Run!" Mikey screamed and he and Jason started running from the spider mutant as fast as they could.

Spider Bytes recovered from the rock to the head and caught sight of the fleeing boys. He grinned and gave chase. Mikey was able to get Jason to split up and run in a different direction then him in an attempt to lose the spider mutant. Spider Bytes saw this and prepared to follow Jason until Mikey threw another rock at him.

"Hey, pea brain!" Mikey shouted, "Why don't you try picking on me?"

Spider Bytes growled at Mikey and started chasing him next. Mikey managed to get a few feet away before Spider Bytes knocked him into a wall. He tried to stab Mikey with his spider-like leg, but Mikey rolled out of the way just in time so all he got was a scratch on his shoulder and the strap of his backpack. Spider Bytes scratched and clawed at him more times until he was covered in injuries. Mikey managed to get him in the face at one point with an empty can and tried to run away.

Suddenly, Mikey felt himself get pulled back and his bag rip. He looked up and saw his papers fly out and Spider Bytes catch them in his hands. Said mutant looked at the papers and then shot Mikey a bored expression.

"You know, I always hated math. It was always the dumbest subject in school," said Spider Bytes, "I wonder how it tastes."

Mikey glared at Spider Bytes for that comment and growled, "Don't you dare!"

Spider Bytes smiled at Mikey's angry expression and said, "Down the hatch."

And then Spider Bytes tossed the papers into his mouth and started chewing. Mikey screamed in horror as he watched the spider mutant chewing his homework and swallow it. After watching his hard work eaten, Mikey growled at the spider mutant in anger.

Spider Bytes simply smiled at Mikey and said, "Tasted kinda like chicken."

"You're gonna pay for that!" Mikey shouted, standing back up.

Spider Bytes only laughed at Mikey and said, "You're gonna have to catch me first, brat."

With that, Spider Bytes jumped up to the rooftops and started leaping away. Mikey, who was unwilling to let the spider mutant get away with eating his homework, gave chase from the ground. As he ran through the streets, Mikey passed April who was heading home.

"Mikey?" April asked, "What are you doing?"

"Can't talk now, April!" Mikey called as he ran, "A mutant ate my homework!"

As she watched him run, April stared at him in confusion and asked, "What?"

Mikey chased Spider Bytes for two more blocks until he ultimately lost him. Seeing that there was no way he was going to find him, Mikey screamed in frustration and walked away, mentally swearing revenge on the spider mutant. Jason caught up with Mikey again and was concerned when he found him covered in cuts and bruises. He offered to walk him home and Mikey accepted, feeling that he could use his friend's company right now.

* * *

At the antique store, Shen had just finished locking up and was just about to head up to the living space upstairs when she noticed her youngest son and his friend walking her way. She smiled warmly at them until she saw how hurt Mikey was.

"Michelangelo!" she screamed as she ran to her youngest son. As she looked him over, Shen asked him, "What happened to you?"

"Mikey had a run in with a psycho spider monster," said Jason.

"What?" Shen asked in confusion, and then she shook her head and said, "Never mind. You can tell me about it inside while I clean up your wounds."

Shen then lead the boys upstairs. Once they were inside, Shen told Jason to make himself at home while she treated Mikey's wounds in the kitchen. As Shen cleaned and bandaged Mikey's wounds, Mikey told her about how after he was finished his homework at the library he went to hang out with Jason and they were attacked by Spider Bytes.

"You poor thing," said Shen, cleaning another cut on Mikey's leg, "Well, at least you only received minor injuries."

"He also ate my homework," Mikey grumbled, "And after all that hard work Miwa, Leo, Raph, and I did to get it done-Ow!"

"Sorry," said Shen. And then she put a band-aid on his cut and said, "Don't worry about the homework right now. Your health is more important."

After Shen was finished with Mikey's wounds, she called Yoshi and let him know what happened. So it was no surprise when Yoshi arrived minutes later with the others in tow. The only one who was not present was Donnie, who was still working at Rockwell's lab. He would have come straight home as well, but Shen assured him that everything was under control and that Mikey was fine.

"We heard about what happened, Mikey!" said Raph, "Are you gonna be okay?"

"Yeah," said Mikey, "Mother said the injuries aren't that bad."

"That's good," said Miwa, and then her expression turned dark as she said, "I'm still gonna hunt that monster down and make him pay."

"I'm with you, sis," said Raph, "We'll show that nutcase what happens when he messes with our little brother!"

"I heard that," Jason called, "And I wouldn't recommend going after that guy. He's huge, strong, and has these gnarly skills. He could've killed us if he wanted to."

"I'm goona have to go with Miwa and Raph on this one," said Leo, "This creature needs to be stopped, otherwise things could get worse. He may actually kill someone next time."

"You've got a point," said Jason, "But maybe you should call the cops or something to take care of it."

"I doubt the cops would believe the story if we told them," said Leo, "But, luckily, we know some people who specialize in cases like this."

Mikey looked confused until Leo cleared his throat and jerked his head towards the wall scroll with the family crest. This helped Mikey see that Donnie was referring to their ninjas identities and he smiled and said, "Oh yeah. Didn't think of that."

"Couldn't have said it better myself," said Leo, "Jason, you should head home; your parents might be worried about you."

"I can drive you if you'd like," Shen offered.

"Okay," said Jason, getting up from the couch, "Wish that team luck for me when you call them."

"Will do, man," said Mikey.

And with that, Shen lead Jason out the door to take him home. Her family left the house for the lair to gear up and track Spider Bytes down to stop him from harming anyone else and get back at him for hurting Mikey. Once they were fully geared up, Miwa, Leo, Raph, and Mikey left to search the city for the spider mutant. They went to where Mikey had last seen Spider Bytes and started looking for clues from there. They were starting to give up hope that they would find anything until Leo heard his phone ringing and checked the caller ID. He saw that it was Donnie and answered.

And with that, Shen lead Jason out the door to take him home. Her family left the house for the lair to gear up and track Spider Bytes down to stop him from harming anyone else and get back at him for hurting Mikey. Once they were fully geared up, Miwa, Leo, Raph, and Mikey left to search the city for the spider mutant. They went to where Mikey had last seen Spider Bytes and started looking for clues from there. They were starting to give up hope that they would find anything until Leo heard his phone ringing and checked the caller ID. He saw that it was Donnie and answered.

"What's up, Donnie?" said Leo.

" _I think I saw Spider Bytes heading down an alley not far from Rockwell's lab,_ " said Donnie, " _You guys want me to follow him? I have some ninja gear in my bag that I can change into._ "

"Alright. Make up an excuse to get out first though. We don't need your boss finding out our family secret," said Leo, "But, how did you know that you might need ninja gear today?"

" _Who says this is the only time I packed it?_ " Donnie replied, and then ended the call.

Leo often could not believe how prepared his brother was for literally every occasion. Sometimes he admired that, other times he found it a little spooky; he often wondered if Donnie was actually psychic. This time, however, Leo ignored that remembering that they had a mission.

Leo looked back at his other siblings and said, "Donnie said he saw Spider Bytes not far from Rockwell's lab."

"I know where that is," said Miwa, "I know the fastest way to get there."

"Perfect," said Leo, "Lead the way, Karai."

* * *

Meanwhile at Dr, Rockwell's lab, Donnie had told Rockwell that he had to go home early because his family needed him. Dr. Rockwell understood and allowed him to leave. What the doctor did not know was that right after his assistant left the room, he ducked into a closet and changed into ninja clothes and armed himself with a collapsible bo staff. After he exited the building, Donnie quietly snuck into the alley and followed Spider Bytes trail. He found said spider mutant spying on a passerby. Upon seeing that the next poor innocent that he planned on attacking was April who was just heading home, Donnie could no longer stand by and do nothing, so he leaped into action.

Donnie smacked Spider Bytes in the head, getting his attention off of April and on him. Spider Bytes smirked when he saw Donnie and said, "Well, look what we have here. It's the Kung-Fu kid with the stick."

"First off, I'm a ninja," said Donnie, "Second, and probably more importantly, you stay away from that girl!"

"What, you got a thing for her or something?" Spider Bytes asked.

Donnie blushed under his mask, and then glared at the spider mutant and said, "That's none of your business. Besides, my feelings for a girl aren't the issue here."

"That's right!" Raph's voice shouted. Both Spider Bytes and Donnie looked up to see the other four ninjas standing on top of a nearby roof. The ninjas jumped down to join their brother and Raph continued, "The problem is you've been hurting innocent people. And we're not standing for it."

"Is that supposed to scare me or something?" Spider Bytes asked.

"No," said Miwa, "The scary part is the part where we kick your spider butt to the curb!"

The ninjas got ready to attack, but Mikey stopped them and said, "He's mine."

The others wanted to protest, but when they saw the determined look on Mikey's face, they backed off and let him take Spider Bytes himself. Donnie joined the others and stayed out of Mikey's way as well. The made a promise to jump in if things got out of hand, but first see what Mikey could do alone. Spider Bytes seemed amused by the fact that Mikey was going to challenge him by himself without back-up.

"Don't you need your friends to help you in case you get a boo-boo?" Spider Bytes asked.

"This is between you and me," said Mikey, in a dark voice, "You and I have some unfinished business."

"Oh really?" Spider Bytes asked, "And what might that be?"

"This is for attacking those two kids at the half-pipe!" Mikey snapped, and then kicked Spider Bytes between the legs.

The spider mutant screamed in a pitched voice and fell to his knees. The other four ninjas cringed at the site.

Mikey pulled back his fist and said, "This is for the cuts and bruises you gave one of them!"

Mikey punched Spider Bytes in the face and the kicked him into a wall. But he was not done there. He approached the spider once again and forced him to face him.

"And this is for eating that same kid's homework!" Mikey yelled.

Mikey then proceeded in delivering multiple punches and kicks to the spider mutant. The other four ninjas watched in shock and fear as their baby brother beat the mutant senseless until he crashed into the street right in front of April, who jumped in surprise. Mikey started walking up to the mutant to beat him up more until a pair of hands grabbed his arm to stop him.

"Naoto, that's enough," said Leo, "I think you've made your point."

"What just happened?" April asked.

"Long story," said Miwa.

Suddenly, Spider Bytes started acting strange. His face twitched until he finally threw up on the street.

"Eww!" April screamed.

"Ugh!" Raph groaned, "That is just wrong!"

"Oops," said Mikey, feeling a little embarrassed, "Guess I got carried away."

"Ya think?" Leo asked.

"Is that paper in there?" April asked.

Donnie examined it closely and said, "Yup. More specifically, the Homework of one Michelangelo Kurama; a kid he had attacked earlier today."

"What's wrong with you?" Miwa asked the spider.

"Give me a break, will ya? Mutating gave me weird taste," said Spider Bytes. He then spotted Mikey and screamed. He bowed down to Mikey and begged, "I'm really sorry about causing so much trouble! I promise, I will never attack innocent kids again! Just please don't beat me up again!"

"That's all I needed to hear," said Mikey, "You're free to go."

"Thank you so much," said Spider Bytes.

And with that he took off into the night, happy to get away from the dangerous ninja in orange. Mikey was happy to see him leave and then turned to rejoin his siblings and friend. However, in their faces, he saw shock and worry. He was confused until Leo spoke.

"You can be seriously twisted when you want to be," said Leo.

"Sorry for scaring you guys," said Mikey, realizing that Leo meant the way he beat up Spider Bytes, "It's just that I worked so hard on that homework and Spider Bytes just ate it like it was a midnight snack."

The others smiled at the ninja in orange and Miwa put his hand on his shoulder and said, "It's okay, little brother. Just try to have a little restraint next time."

"Yeah," said Raph, "Random outbursts of rage are kinda my thing."

The others all laughed at Raph's comment and Donnie told Mikey, "And as for your homework, I can help you do it over again when we get back home."

"Thanks, D," said Mikey, and then his stomach growled like a lion, "But can we eat first. All that fighting made me hungry."

Everyone laughed at Mikey being his usual hungry self and headed home to have dinner. After dinner, Donnie helped Mikey with his homework and put it away so Mikey could turn it in tomorrow.

* * *

The next day, the siblings went to school as usual and headed to their first classes. Mikey walked in just as Jason was telling Mr. Digby about Spider Bytes attacking him and Mikey and eating his homework. It was clear that the teacher was not at all amused by his students tale of "spider monsters" attacking his students.

"Jason, I've heard enough," said Mr. Digby, "It's clear to me that Michelangelo didn't do his homework again and you're trying to cover for him."

"But he _did_ do his homework," said Jason.

"That's true," said Mikey, getting the attention of his friend and teacher, "And I have it right here."

Mikey reached into his backpack, pulled out the papers, and handed them over to Mr. Digby. Mr. Digby looked the papers over and seemed pleased with the work. Once he was done, he worte something on the top right hand corner and handed it back to Mikey.

"Well done, Michelangelo," said Mr. Digby, "See how actually doing your homework and not making up stories pays off?"

Mikey took the papers back and smiled at the 100% mark at the top. He was glad that Donnie helped him get that done and looked it over when he did problems himself.

"Thanks, teach," said Mikey, "I promise to work on breaking that habit."

"That's good to hear," said Mr. Digby, "Though I am curious about how you received those injuries you have."

"Oh, these?" Mikey asked, referring to band-aid covered cuts and bruises, "Jason and I had a run in with the Purple Dragons."

"But, Mike-" Jason started to say, but Mikey gave him a look that said to remain silent.

"Then why was Jason telling me about a spider monster attacking you two?" Mr. Digby asked.

"He got so freaked out by the whole thing I guess he blacked out or something," said Mikey, "Probably dreamed about the spider monster."

"Oh," said Mr. Digby, "I guess that makes sense. Now, why don't you two take your seats and wait for the rest of the class."

"Okay," said the boys.

After they took their seats, Jason leaned towards Mikey and asked, "Why'd you lie to him about the spider monster?"

"I figured he'd think we were crazy," said Mikey, "Best to just keep that to ourselves. Besides, I have a feeling we won't be seeing that dude for a while if at all after the team took care of him."

"Okay, Mike," said Jason, "If you say so."

the rest of class went on as usual, Mr. Digby teaching and the students listening to the lesson, or ignoring him in favor of the rumors about spider monsters. Other students started suspecting that Mikey might have actually been a victim judging by his injuries. And they had no idea how right they were.


	10. The Robot Defender

**Author's Note:** I'd like to give a special shout out to my sister and author Sunny Lighter for collaborating with me on this story. I'd also like to thank the readers who have reviewed and are following the story.

As many of you probably already know, Sunny Lighter is the author of such stories as "Same Difference" and "Turtle Loops". Feel free to check them out.

* * *

 **The Robot Defender**

The teens were doing their usual ninja stuff; meaning trying to find info on the Kraang and keeping an eye out for the Foot. One night, they all got a tip from April that some Kraang were hiding out in a warehouse and went to investigate. While the teens did that, their parents waited at home for them to return with April, who had come over. While they knew their children would be able to defend themselves, they still worried for their safety.

April found Yoshi meditating and Shen nervously pacing in the living room waiting for the children. Finally, April felt that she had to speak up.

"Shen, you need to relax," said April, "The guys will be back before you know it. They always come back. Yoshi trained them, so don't worry so much."

Shen sighed at that and said, "April, a parent cannot help but worry about their children, no matter how prepared they are. I'm sure your father is more worried about you than himself right now."

"You might be right," said April.

"You'll understand when you have children of your own one day," said Shen.

"Yoshi doesn't seem all that worried," said April.

Yoshi opened his eyes and looked at April as he said, "Who says I'm not worried? Meditation keeps me from panicking."

"Oh," said April while secretly thinking, ' _I'm not sure I wanna see him panicking._ '

Shen then heard the house phone ring and went to answer it. "Moshi, moshi? Oh, hello, Miwa. Oh, that's great. What? Really? Well, I guess that's alright. Let me see that when we get there before he does anything with it. Your father and I will be down there shortly. Oh, and April's here as well, we'll bring her along. Goodbye."

After hanging up the phone, Shen turned to her husband and said, "The children are heading to the lair. They completed their mission."

April heard that and smiled as she said, "That's great!"

Yoshi nodded and added, "Indeed it is."

"Oh, and I feel I should tell you, Donatello is bringing a droid with him," said Shen, "Miwa said he wanted to study it further."

"A droid?" Yoshi asked, "Do you mean a Kraang droid?"

"Yes, but without the alien inside," said Shen, "I told Miwa to let us have a look at it before Donatello did anything with it."

Yoshi thought about the idea for a minute and then said, "Alright, we'll do that."

And then he, Shen, and April headed out the back door and into the alley. Yoshi lifted up the manhole cover and Shen and April descended down into the sewer with him following close behind. Upon arrival at the lair, Yoshi, Shen, and April found the teens all hanging out together; and Donnie did indeed have an empty Kraang droid with him. At the moment he was arguing with Miwa.

"Come on, sis!" Donnie whined, "Let me take it apart now!"

"I said 'no'," said Miwa, "We're supposed to wait for mother and father before you do anything with it."

Leo then noticed their parents and told his siblings, "You don't have to wait any longer. They're here."

Miwa, Raph, Donnie, and Mikey all turned around and saw their parents coming through the turnstiles.

"Hi, mother. Hi, father," said Donnie. He then noticed his crush following close behind and blushed as he said, "Hi, April."

"Hi, Donnie," said April. And then she found a place to sit down and said, "I think your parents wanted to talk to you."

"Oh, right," said Donnie, remembering what he wanted to tell them. He cleared his throat and told them, "I've wanted to study the Kraang's technology for some time now."

"Oh, really?" Yoshi asked, "And why is that?"

"This technology is far more advanced than anything I've ever seen before. It's thousands, maybe millions, of years ahead of the technology of our planet!" said Donnie excitedly. He pulled out a piece of the droid and showed it off to the family and asked, "Do any of you have any idea what this is?"

There was a short silence until April said, "No."

"Me neither!" said Donnie, still excited, "But I would love to find out! Maybe I can even make something out of it myself!"

Shen smiled as her son was becoming more and more excited about the possibilities of using the Kraang technology Ever since he could walk, Donnie had always been a curious child; always eager to learn everything he could about something new.

"Alright, Donatello, you win," said Shen, "You may study the Kraang technology."

"That is so unfair! You can't just-" Donnie started complain, and then his changed to one of surprise and he asked, "Wait, did you just say 'yes'?"

"Yes," said Shen, "I can see how curious you are and I'm not one to stand the way of you and your curiosity."

"Also, If we are to fight more effectively against the Kraang, we must learn as much as possible about their technology," Yoshi added, "So, you have my permission to study the technology as well."

"Thank you guys!" said Donnie, hugging his parents. He let go and said, "You won't regret it!"

Donnie then grabbed the Kraang droid and pulled with him into his lab, happy as a little kid on Christmas morning. Raph rolled his eyes at the sight while Leo looked somewhat worried about his brother poking around the inside of a Kraang droid.

* * *

Over the next few days, Donnie studied the droid and was amazed at the complexity and power. With technology like this, he and his siblings could be invincible. He started brainstorming what to make. He went through many different weapon ideas until he finally decided to build a battle robot; he figured he could turn combat into a video game.

As Donnie started sketching designs, Shen came with some lunch for him and noticed his work.

"What are you working on, Donatello?" Shen asked.

"Oh hi, mother," said Donnie, "I've decided to use the Kraang tech to make a battle robot that I can control from anywhere."

This idea made Shen light up. Her son was currently inventing a way for him and his siblings to fight the Kraang without having to put themselves in harm's way. This was a dream come true!

"That's wonderful!" said Shen, "I can't wait until it's finished."

Donnie sighed and said, "It may take a while, though. I still can't get the design right."

Suddenly, Donnie felt something rubbing against his leg. He looked down and saw Spike crawling underneath his desk.

"Spike, what're you doing down there? Raph's gonna be upset if something happens to you," said Donnie.

He picked up the turtle and was about to bring him back to his brother. However, as he looked at the turtle in his hands, the wheels in Donnie's head began to turn. Donnie put Spike down on his desk and then took a couple of pictures of him with his phone. After he was done taking pictures, Donnie picked Spike back up and carried him out of the lab.

Raph was in the living room looking under the couch for his pet turtle when the voice of his younger brother got his attention.

"Hey, Raph, look who I found," said Donnie.

Raph looked up and smiled at the sight of his lost pet. "Spike! There you are! I've been looking all over for you, buddy," He said as he stood up and walked over to Donnie. He took Spike in his hands and said, "Thanks, Donnie. I owe you one."

"You're welcome, Raph," said Donnie.

"Where'd you find him anyway?" Raph asked, giving his pet a hug.

"He was in my lab crawling around under my desk," said Donnie, "While he was there, I got some design ideas for my new inventions."

Raph smiled at his pet turtle and said, "Ya hear that, buddy? You were Donnie's inspiration. Can't wait to see what you make."

Donnie smiled proudly and said, "You won't be disappointed with the results."

Donnie then left the room and descended back to his lab to work on his new project. Raph could not help but get curious about what his little brother was working on.

* * *

A week went by and Donnie was still hard at work on his new project. In the meantime, everything went along like normal.

One Saturday afternoon, April was visiting their house with her laptop. She had told the siblings and their father that she set up a message board to keep an eye out for unusual sightings around the city. People had sent in pictures and videos; her main hope was to find anything possible to track down the Kraang and save her father. One video in particular caught their attention, that of a gas explosion. Emerging from the smoke was a Kraang droid. This certainly seemed promising.

"What do think, Leo?" Raph asked.

"I think it should be looked into," said Leo. He looked over at his siblings and said, "Miwa's the most stealthy, so she'll go and check it out for us. If she finds anything out, she'll contact us. Got that, sis?"

Miwa smiled and said, "Loud and clear."

Miwa stood up from the couch and made her leave to do her reconnaissance mission. After Miwa left, Shen arrived in the house and noticed that her daughter was absent from the group.

"Where is Miwa?" Shen asked.

"She left a little earlier to go do some recon on a possible Kraang plot," said Raph.

This news was quite unsettling to Shen. She would have gotten a word out had it not been for the huge robotic footsteps coming their way from the back door. Everyone turned around and saw a yellow turtle shaped robot standing in front of them. The robot opened its mouth, revealing a megaphone inside, and a familiar voice came out of the speaker.

" _Take me to your leader_ ," said the voice.

Shen and April immediately started laughing after hearing that line. The boys on the other hand looked annoyed at it, while Yoshi seemed just as amused as the girls.

"Donatello, stop fooling around," said Yoshi, still finding the robot speaker trick amusing.

The next thing they heard was the sound of their brother's laughing voice. Donnie came out of the corner holding a remote control in his hands and laughing.

"Sorry," said Donnie, trying to stop himself from laughing, "I couldn't resist."

"What is this thing?" Leo asked.

Donnie smiled proudly and said, "I'm glad you asked. Ladies and gentlemen, and Raphael..." the statement made Raph annoyed, "This is my very latest, and possibly greatest, invention."

"Why does it look like a turtle?" Leo asked.

"I got the idea when Spike was crawling around under my desk," said Donnie, "It just felt right."

"So, this robot was inspired by my little buddy?" Raph asked. He thought things over for a minute and then smiled and said, "I like it."

"I knew you would," said Donnie with a smile.

Leo looked skeptically at the robot and asked, "Does it even have weapons or anything?"

To answer Leo's question, Donnie pressed a button on the remote. The robot made squeaking noises and revealed several hidden weapons such as lasers, flamethrowers, machine guns, and a baseball bat. This made everyone jump in surprise. Donnie smiled at their reactions and pressed a button on the robots head to retract the weapons.

"Does that answer your question, aniki?" Donnie asked Leo.

Leo nodded his head and Shen shot Donnie a stern expression and said, "Hamato Donatello, what did I say about weapons in the house?"

Donnie shrank and said, "Don't use weapons in the house."

"That's right," said Shen.

"Sorry, guys," said Donnie.

The others shrugged and told Donnie that everything was fine. Mikey walked up to the robot and started looking it over, fascinated by the work his brother did on it.

"How did you make it?" April asked.

"I reverse engineered it from the Kraang droid I brought home," said Donnie, "I figured it might come in handy next time that we have a particularly dangerous mission. If that happens, the drone can handle the dangerous stuff while we stay out of harm's way."

"Donnie, that's cool and all but we don't need a battle robot," said Leo, "It takes the whole point out of being a ninja."

"It's exactly the point of being a ninja. We adapt," said Donnie.

"It's true," said Yoshi, "Ninjas have improved their arsenal for centuries. How do you think we have such a wide verity of weapons?"

"Good point," said Leo.

"Hey, Donnie, does your robot have a name yet?" Mikey asked, "Cause if not, I have a great one in mind."

"No, actually," said Donnie, "I've just been calling it 'the drone'."

"Can we call it Metalhead?" Mikey asked, "I think it fits."

Donnie thought about the idea for a bit, and then said, "Okay, his name is Metalhead."

* * *

Meanwhile, Miwa had found the secret hiding place that the Kraang were using. She hid behind a large wooden crate, in full ninja gear for stealth, and watched as a Kraang droid entered the code into the keypad and then go inside a seemingly abandoned warehouse.

"Alright, my robotic friend, let's see what you're up to," Miwa quietly, and then climbed in quietly through an open window.

Once inside, Miwa hid in the shadows and listened closely to what the Kraang were saying to each other. As predicted, the Kraang did not even detect her presence.

"Is that which is the unstable mutagen ready for usage in the experiment that Kraang is ready to begin?" The first Kraang asked.

The second Kraang nodded it's head and answered, "The unstable mutagen will be tomorrow releasing in the city's water supply."

Hearing what the Kraang just said made Miwa's eyes widen in shock. The Kraang were often difficult to understand, but one did not need to be completely fluent in their speech to know that they were planning on poisoning the city's water supply with mutagen! This cannot be allowed to happen!

"Many infected humans will mutate," said the first Kraang, "This is being a good way to perfect the mutagen to the point of perfection."

"Kraang does not have many options for perfecting the mutagen to the point of perfection," said the second Kraang, "Let Kraang be reminded that Kraang is missing the key."

"Let Kraang be reminded that the losing of the key was not the fault of Kraang," said the first Kraang.

This made Miwa raise her eyebrow. What could they have been talking about? What was this 'key' that they needed. Was it some kind of chemical or metal or technology. And why were they calling the mutagen unstable? Was it not supposed to create the mutants that it made? Unfortunately, all of that would have to wait. Right now, she had to get the information to her family so that they could stop the Kraang before they could begin their evil experiment.

Quickly, Miwa whipped out her cell phone and started texting Leo what she had just found out. She could only pray that he and the others arrive in time to help stop the Kraang. After sending the text, Miwa stayed in her hiding place and listened to more of the Kraang's conversation.

A third Kraang arrived in the warehouse and said, "The mutagen supply for the experiment of Kraang will be arriving in the time known as soon."

"Excellent," said the second Kraang.

"And what news of the girl?" asked the first Kraang, "The one known as April O'Neil. Has she been acquired?"

The third Kraang shook it's head and said, "Negative. The one known as April O'Neil has not been acquired."

"What of the boy?" asked the first Kraang, "Has Kraang been able to obtain the one known as Donatello Kurama?"

"Negative. Both April O'Neil Donatello Kurama are always too heavily protected," said the third Kraang, "However, Kraang sees no real point in capturing the boy. The plan which is the invasion plan of Kraang can be accomplished with or without the one known as Donatello. In addition, Kraang already has many scientists in their possession. Missing just one will not adversely affect the plan."

The first Kraang punched the third in the robotic face and said, "The one known as Donatello Kurama is very valuable to Kraang! He has the potential to perfect the mutagen to the point of perfection in ways many other scientists cannot! Kraang cannot allow the one known as Donatello Kurama to do the thing called slip away!"

"Kraang did think of that," said the third Kraang, "Kraang apologizes."

The first nodded it's head and walked away to get back to work, while the second Kraang looked at the third and said, "Kraang is that which humans call an idiot."

As the second Kraang walked away, the third put its robot hands on the robot hips and said, "Well, Kraang is that which humans call mean!"

Had the situation been different, Miwa might have laughed at the Kraang's antics. However, she could not ignore what they were saying about needing her younger brother to perfect their mutagen. That explained why they were after the other scientists, including Kirby O'Neil. She also started wonder why the Kraang were talking about trying to capture April when they had her father the scientist. Were the Kraang worried about Kirby being uncooperative, or was their another reason? And what was this 'key' that they needed that they apparently lost?

* * *

Back at home, Mikey was making faces at Metalhead while April laughed at him. Donnie could see how impressed everyone was with the robot, so he decided to show off some more of its features.

"Okay, Mikey, cut that out," said Donnie, "I wanna show you guys something else."

Mikey backed away from Metalhead and allowed Donnie to show them what he wanted to. Everyone watched as Donnie connected Metalhead's controller to their video game console. After Donnie turned the TV on, they all saw on the screen their living room, exactly from the point where Metalhead was viewing.

Donnie smiled and explained, "With Metalhead hooked up to the TV, we can see what he sees. Watch this."

Using the controller, Donnie made Metalhead walk over to the window and look outside. Everyone looked at the screen and were impressed to see the streets and buildings outside the window. They could also hear the sounds of the city very well.

"He also has a microphone so we can hear what's happening around him," said Donnie, "And, as you all saw earlier, the speaker allows the controller to speak for Metalhead."

"Very impressive, Donatello," said Yoshi, "You've clearly put a lot of thought and hard work into this new weapon."

"When do you think you will be able to use it in battle?" Shen asked.

"I don't think we'll need it, mother," said Leo, "We can fight."

Shen was about to tell Leo something when suddenly, they heard an alert from Leo's cell phone notifying him that he had a text. He looked at his phone and read the message he just got from Miwa. His eyes widened in shock after reading it.

"Guys, we need to go now!" said Leo, "Miwa just texted me. She said that Kraang are gonna poison the city's water supply with mutagen!"

Everyone gasped at the news. "Are you serious?" Raph asked his older brother.

"Afraid so," said Leo.

"If that happens, the whole city will become a disaster area!" said Donnie, "There'll be mutants everywhere!"

"Might not be all bad," said Mikey, "There could be good mutants."

"Maybe," said April, "But we still can't let the Kraang mutated innocent people."

"I agree," said Yoshi, "They must be stopped at any cost."

"Then we have no time to lose," said Leo, "Let's move."

Raph, Donnie, and Mikey nodded and their heads and followed Leo to the lair to gear up for their mission. What they did not realize was that Donnie had left Metalhead's controller hooked up to the TV and Shen noticed it and got an idea. Whatever it took, she was going to protect her babies.

* * *

After gearing up, Leo, Raph, Donnie, and Mikey jumped from roof to roof to the warehouse where their big sister was waiting for them. They stopped on one rooftop and looked over the area to make sure they were going the right way. Once they finally arrived at the warehouse where Miwa was waiting for them, the boys snuck in through the same open window that their sister used, unaware of the presence that was tailing close behind them.

Once inside the warehouse, the boys looked down and saw some Kraang droids carrying mutagen to prepare it for their plan. Leo turned to his brothers and signaled them to attack, which they did. Leo sliced one droid while Raph stabbed another with his sais. Next, Donnie tripped another droid with his staff and Mikey punched it into nothing. Two more came to attack the boys again, but were easily taken down by a tessen and then a flash with a blade. It took a moment for the boys to realize that the flash was their sister. Miwa started stabbing an already downed Kraang repeatedly, which made the boys cringe. Finally, Leo decided to put a stop to it and walked over to his sister.

Leo pulled her away and said, "Sis, that's enough. They're down. And it doesn't look like they're getting back up."

Miwa breathed and then said, "Sorry about that. Something they said earlier made me mad."

"What did they say?" Raph asked in confusion.

Miwa shook her head and said, "I'll tell you guys later. Right now we've gotta move."

"She's right," said Leo, "We have to stop them before the whole city becomes a mutant nesting ground."

The others nodded in agreement and followed Leo and Miwa to stop the Kraang, keeping to the shadows. They watched as the remaining Kraang prepared to go through with their plan to poison the water supply with mutagen. The ninjas got ready to jump out and attack them when they heard Donnie cry out. Miwa, Leo, Raph, and Mikey looked behind them and saw Donnie on his knees clutching his head as he moaned in agony.

"Bro, what's wrong?" Mikey asked.

"My head," Donnie moaned, "It feels like it's gonna explode or something."

"We better get out of here before-" Leo started to say, but was interrupted by the sound of the beeps and whistles of Kraang droids. They all looked up to find Kraang droids staring at them with their blasters aimed at them.

"Too late," said Raph.

The Kraang droids prepared to fire their weapons at the siblings when something suddenly fell from the ceiling and crushed some droids. The thing that fell on the droids turned out to be Metalhead, and it was standing around with its arms awkwardly.

"Metalhead?" Mikey asked.

"Where'd the robot come from?" Miwa asked.

"I'd like to know what it's doing here," said Leo. He then looked to his genius brother and said in a scolding manner, "Tetsuo?"

"Hey, don't look at me," said Donnie, who still had a bad migraine, "I didn't bring him."

" _I'm controlling the robot, my children_ ," said a feminine voice from Metalhead's speaker.

Upon recognizing the voice, the ninjas stared in shock and said, "Mother?!"

"What are you doing?" Leo asked, "And what is wrong with Metalhead's arms?"

" _His hands aren't on his hips?_ " Shen asked from the speaker.

"No," said Raph, feeling a little embarrassed.

"Try pressing 'B'!" Donnie called.

" _Oh,_ " said Shen, " _Thank you, Tetsuo._ "

After that, Metalhead's arms switched from the awkward position to on his hips. Several Kraang open fired on Metalhead, but to their surprise, said robot was quite resilient so their lasers did not harm him in the least: Donnie was quite proud of how thick he made Metalhead's armor.

" _That's very nice,_ " said Shen, " _Now it's my turn._ "

Suddenly, a pistol came out of Metalhead's left hand. Metalhead aimed the pistol at the robots and started firing lasers at the Kraang, destroying their droids instantly. As Metalhead fired the laser in a circle, it sounded like Shen was enjoying it.

" _This is what happens when you mess with a mother's children!_ " she said.

Next, Metalhead's right hand came off and flew right at the Kraang droids, knocking their heads clean off. After that was done, the hand returned to the robot and Shen seemed proud of the outcome.

" _Not bad for a beginner, if I do say so myself._ " said Shen.

"Are you saying you were just winging it with those controls?!" Leo asked in surprise.

" _Actually, I found a cheat sheet that your brother wrote lying on the coffee table at home,_ " Shen explained.

"Anybody wanna explain the robot to me?" Miwa asked.

"Sis, that there is our brother's latest creation, Metalhead," said Mikey, "I came up with the name."

"Is there a story behind this I should know about?" Miwa asked.

"Yes, but we'll tell you about it later," said Leo, and then he turned to Metalhead and said, "Mother, we'll handle the Kraang, you use Metalhead to get Tetsuo out of here; he's in pretty bad shape."

" _No, you all get away from here,_ " said Shen, " _I will handle the Kraang._ "

"We can handle them, Mother," said Miwa, "We've always fought the Kraang and won."

" _I hear what you are saying, my daughter,_ " said Shen, " _But as your mother, I have a duty to protect my children._ "

Miwa was about to protest when Mikey spotted more Kraang about to attack Metalhead from behind and screamed, "Look out!"

Metalhead swiftly turned around with a flamethrower on it's right hand and fired at the Kraang. Next, Shen switched to the pistol and open fired at the Kraang; unfortunately, she almost got her children as well as the Kraang while she was shooting. Unbeknownst to the ninjas and their mother, a fallen Kraang saw the destructive capabilities of Metalhead and recognized it as one of their destroyed droids. This gave the Kraang an idea and it exited it's robot body.

* * *

Back at the house, Yoshi had returned home after bringing April back to her aunt and found his wife playing a video game in the living room, which he found a little odd since she was not that into video games. However, upon closer inspection, Yoshi found out that she was not playing a video game but using their sons' new invention to destroy Kraang droids.

"Shen!" Yoshi shouted, "What are you doing?"

"What does it look like?" Shen asked, "I'm protecting our children from the Kraang."

"That machine is untested," said Yoshi, "Using it in combat now could do more harm than good."

"I know what I'm doing Yoshi," Shen insisted, "Trust me, everything is under control."

"Shen, look out for those gas tanks!" Yoshi shouted.

Unfortunately, Yoshi called out too late and Metalhead's laser hit the gas tanks causing them to explode. The resulting explosion caused Metalhead to fly backwards into a wall. The words "Lost Signal" appeared flashing on the screen in red letters which made Shen and Yoshi panic; not only could they not control the robot, but that blast could have seriously injured their sons and daughter.

"No!" Shen screamed, "I've lost the control signal! Children, are you all alright! Can you hear me!"

" _We're fine!_ " Raph's voice called, " _A little banged up, but we're fine!_ "

As Shen and Yoshi sighed in relief, Shen noticed a Kraang on screen crawling up to Metalhead's view.

"Hold on," said Shen, "What's that Kraang doing?"

"I do not know," said Yoshi, "But it cannot be good."

* * *

Back at the warehouse, Miwa and the boys were still recovering from the gas explosion. While Leo looked Mikey over and Raph looked over Donnie, Donnie could swear he was seeing strange images in his head. In his mind, Donnie could see a Kraang taking control of Metalhead and forcing the robot to attack them. These images seemed to real to be just his imagination, he had to tell his siblings quickly. Opening his eyes, Donnie looked up and saw his older brother worried for him.

"You gonna be okay, man?" Raph asked.

"Guys, we have to get out of here now," said Donnie, "The Kraang are gonna take control over Metalhead."

"What?" Mikey asked as Leo helped him up, "Are you sure?"

"Yes," said Donnie, trying to get up, "We have to go _now_!"

"Bro, how could you possibly know what their planning?" Raph asked, skeptically.

"Just trust me on this!" Donnie barked.

"Uh, guys," said Miwa, "I think we might be too late."

The boys looked up to see Metalhead with a Kraang on its head and it's eyes glowing light purple. It slowly made its way to the ninjas and started talking in as threatening a tone as a Kraang Could muster with their robotic way of speaking.

"The ones that which are called ninjas will now be called ninjas that are..." the Kraang said through Metalhead's speaker and then opened its mouth and said through the megaphone, "... destroyed."

Mikey gulped and said, "Am I the only one here who's scared?"

Metalhead pointed the laser at the ninjas and they all flinched and Raph answered Mikey, "Actually, Naoto, I think I speak for all of us when I say you're not alone!"

"Run!" Leo yelled.

No sooner did Leo scream that than the ninjas dove away from Metalhead in time to avoid being shot by it's lasers. It did not take long for the still standing Kraang droids to join in start shooting at the ninjas. The ninjas did all they could to avoid Metalhead's attacks, but they were quickly running out of room to dodge. Things were starting to look hopeless for the ninjas until Donnie got a really good look at the inside of the building. He could tell that the way the Kraang and Metalhead had shot at one of the metal beams that that one in particular might come apart with just the right shot; with this knowledge, Donnie figured that there might be a chance to defeat Metalhead.

"Doesn't that robot have a weak spot somewhere?" Leo asked.

"Unfortunately, I made him too perfect," said Donnie, "Unless you can take his head off that is."

"This always works," said Mikey, and then he ran up to Metalhead in between the legs. Unfortunately, all that happened was Mikey hurting his foot, "Usually it works."

"It usually works on our other opponents because they're humans so there's actually something there _to_ kick," said Miwa, "That won't work with Metalhead because he's a robot, so he's all _metal_!"

"Oh," said Mikey, who now felt a little embarrassed.

"Listen," said Donnie, "I have a plan to stop Metalhead, but I need the rest of you to keep the other droids busy while I do it."

"There's no way we're letting fight that thing by yourself!" said Raph.

"We don't have a choice!" said Donnie.

Not seeing anyway other way to defeat the robot, Raph nodded and allowed Donnie to face Metalhead alone. Donnie unsheathed his staff and faced his creation with the intention of facing him in battle while his siblings faced the other droids. As Miwa, Leo, Raph, and Mikey charged at the Kraang droids, Donnie dodged Metalhead's attacks and even made it fly back at him. Finally, they were close enough to the beam where all he had to do was get him over there.

"Hey, Kraang!" Donnie, called, "The one who is called your mother wears the boots that are made for combat!"

"The comment that is made by you shows ignorance of Kraang," said the Kraang, "The ones known by you as mother..."

"Just come get me!" Donnie snapped, not feeling the desire to be corrected by a Kraang.

Ignoring Donnie's comment about its mother, if it has one, the Kraang fired it's lasers at him. As the lasers came flying at him, Donnie leaped forward and jumped over the Kraang's head. The Kraang continued to fire at Donnie unaware that it had just fired at the beam that Donnie was hoping it would. After Donnie landed safely on the floor, the metal beam came falling down so, Donnie used his staff to block the blow that was surely to come upon Metalhead. By the time the Kraang had realized what was going on, it was too late to dodge and it was crushed by the falling beam. The others looked at the fallen beam, worried for their brother's safety, and saw Metalhead trapped between the metal beam and their brother's wooden staff, their brother at a safe distance.

Donnie looked up at his handy work, smiled proudly and said, "Booyakasha!"

"Sounds weird when he says it," said Mikey.

"Sounds weird when _you_ say it," said Raph.

"That which is known as revenge shall be had upon those who call themselves the ninjas," said the Kraang.

Right after the Kraang said that, Metalhead's turned off and the Kraang opened it's eyes to glare at Donnie. Next, it jumped off of Metalhead and landed on Donnie's face, which made Donnie scream in terror. Luckily, the Kraang got off of his face and crawled away from the ninjas.

"Eww, gross," said Miwa, "Our brother has Kraang germs on his face."

"I highly doubt there's any such thing," said Leo.

"Even so," said Donnie, getting back up, "I'm washing my face when we get home. Ow!"

After Donnie got out from underneath his creation, Raph punched his genius brother in the arm and snapped, "That was for scaring us!"

"Sorry," said Donnie, "But it was the only way."

"Well, now that that's over, let's get back home and rest," Leo suggested, "Before the cops show up to investigate the strange sounds and lights."

Everyone nodded in agreement and helped remove Metalhead from the wreckage; it would not look good if the police found a destroyed robot in the building. After safely removing the robot, the siblings all retreated from the building together and headed home.

* * *

Back at home, the siblings changed out of their ninja garbs and into their pajamas and washed up before getting ready for bed.

As they were getting ready, Shen approached her children and told them, "I'm so sorry about what happened."

" _You're_ sorry?" Leo asked.

"If I had not taken Metalhead into combat, the Kraang might not have gotten control over him," said Shen, "I endangered you all by using him."

"Mother, it was an accident," said Miwa, "You had no way of knowing that the Kraang would take control of Metalhead and use him against us."

"Besides, I'm the one who built him in the first place," said Donnie, "So, I'm just as much responsible for what happened."

"You may have invented Metalhead," said Shen, "But _I_ was the one who chose to take him into combat without properly testing it. I was just so scared of losing you all to the Kraang."

The kids all smiled at their mother and Mikey said, "We understand; parents can't help but worry about their children."

"And I also know that you are ninjas, so danger is inevitable," said Shen, "But, even so, as your mother, it is supposed to be my duty to keep you all safe."

"That is all true," said Yoshi, "I have the same feelings as you, my love. If things could be different, then I would be the one risking my life instead. But, as things are, all I can do is believe in our sons and daughter and believe that they will return safely."

Shen smiled at her husband's words and said, "I will do the same, as best I can."

Yoshi then turned to his genius son and said, "Another thing that is puzzling me is how Donatello knew exactly what the Kraang was about to do before it happened. Shen and I could not predict its intentions and we could see it on the screen."

"I don't know," said Donnie, "I just knew somehow. It was like I was looking right into the Kraang's thoughts."

"How strange," said Yoshi, pondering what his son had just told him.

"Oh, almost forgot," said Leo, "Sis, you said you heard the Kraang say something earlier that made you mad. What was it."

Miwa took a deep breath and told her family, "Well, I found out why they were after Donnie, Mr. O'Neil and the other scientists. Apparently, they're using them to perfect the mutagen; which leads me to believe that it wasn't supposed to do what we've seen it do here. Hearing that they wanted use our brother as a slave just really got me angry."

"Whoa," said Leo, "Thank god they didn't know Donnie was with us."

Raph punched the couch cushion and snapped, "There's no way we're letting them use our brother like that!"

Mikey hugged his older twin and said, "Don't you worry, D, we'll protect you from those evil brain things."

Donnie smiled at his baby brother and said, "Thanks, Mikey."

"Wait, there's more!" said Miwa, "The Kraang are also still looking for April, so we should be sure to keep her close. I did hear them say why they were looking for her, but I know it can't be good. They also said that they had lost something that they called 'the key', whatever that is; I think it could be what they need to perfect the mutagen."

All of this new information was a lot to take in all at once, but the family understood how serious the situation was becoming. They all agreed to do everything to keep both Donnie and April safe whilst searching for Kirby O'Neil and keeping an eye out for 'the key' that the Kraang needed. One way or another, they would keep their family and friend safe and stop the Kraang.


	11. What it Means to be a True Leader

**What it Means to be a True Leader**

It had been nearly three days since the incident with Metalhead and everyone was still recovering from the events of that battle. They spent a good amount their spare time looking for any evidence to 'the key' that the Kraang were searching for; so far they had yet to obtain any promising leads.

This night in particular Leo was leading the team in a regular patrol when they spotted a pair of thugs trying to break into a jewelry store and steal the jewels. Leo had the team split up and go in different directions. Raph and Mikey each hid behind a trash can, Miwa hid behind the wall, Leo watch from the rook of a nearby building, and Donnie went to the getaway car and started messing around with it.

As the crooks were focused on stealing the jewels, Leo called Raph on his cell phone and said, "Listen closely, Raph, I need you to stay hidden while Miwa goes in first. When the thugs come running out scared, that's when you and Mikey take them down. Don't start until you hear the thugs screaming."

"Hold on, Leo," said Raph, "I should go in first and Miwa should help Mikey with them out here."

"Raph, if you go in first they might hear you coming," said Leo, "Miwa's the stealthiest, so they won't know she's in there."

"If we wait too long, the thugs will get away with the jewels," said Raph, "I'm going in now."

"Raph, I'm the leader and you do as I say!" said Leo, "And I say stay hidden!"

"I'm hanging up now," said Raph, and then he pressed the hang-up button on his phone, ending his conversation with his brother.

Leo groaned after Raph hung up on him and could do little besides watch as Raph rushed inside the jewelry store right behind Miwa with Mikey following close behind Raph. Leo watched hopelessly as he heard Raph, Miwa, Mikey, and the thugs shouting at each other; he could swear he even heard them cursing. He also heard gunshots being fired and his siblings screaming. The next thing he saw was the thugs running in out of the store with two duffle bags, each filled with stolen jewels, in the hands heading right for their getaway car, which Donnie was still messing around with. Leo was about to tell Donnie to get out of there, but the thugs already saw him and pointed their guns at him.

"What the heck do you think you're doing, you brat?!" one of the thugs asked.

"Get away from there right now, unless you want a bullet in your back!" said the second one.

Hearing their voices plus the clicking sounds of their guns, Donnie gulped and turned around holding his hands up in surrender. He shook as he told them, "Don't shoot, please."

Leo climbed down from the roof just as Miwa, Raph, and Mikey came running out of the jewelry store after the thugs. The thugs saw them coming and took the chance to grab Donnie in a headlock. The whole team stopped in their tracks when they saw that the thug had their brother in a headlock with a gun to his head.

"Stay where you are, or this one gets his brains blown out," said the thug holding Donnie.

The team could do little more than cringe as they watched the one thug jump in the car to start it up while the other backed away towards the passenger's side with Donnie still in his grasp. It looked like they were going to get away when the driver tried to start the car, but nothing happened. He tried again, but the car still would not start. As the driver tried for the third time to start the car with the same results, his partner got really fed up with him.

"What's going on in there?!" he asked.

"Something's wrong with this car!" said the driver, "I can't get it to start! I think that kid did something to the darn thing!"

While they were fighting, Donnie decided that this was the best time to get away. So he elbowed his captor in the stomach and the kicked him away from him. After he was free, Donnie ran away from him and back to his siblings. Raph took advantage of his brother's freedom to give the driver a good punch to the face, knocking him out cold. Mikey took his chance to tie the thugs up with a rope he brought with him and Miwa left them where they could easily be found while Donnie made an anonymous report to the police. Just for fun, Mikey left a note on them saying ' _Courtesy your friendly neighborhood ninjas_ ' attached to one of the thugs. Once they were finished, the team regrouped and disappeared into the night.

* * *

Once the team returned home, they were greeted by their waiting parents. Said couple had kept already had dinner ready on the table for them so that the children could eat.

"Oh good, you're home," said Shen, "And you're safe."

"How was your patrol of the city?" Yoshi asked.

"No Kraang leads," said Raph, "But we did stop a jewelry store robbery."

"Barely," said Miwa, "My sneak attack was ruined by you rushing in close behind me."

"Hey, I could've handled it if _somebody_ didn't shout his dumb catchphrase!" Raph snapped, looking at Mikey on 'somebody', "That's what blew our cover, not me."

"Hey!" Mikey snapped, "My catchphrase is not dumb! And we probably could've caught them outside if you two weren't arguing with each other! Thanks to that, they got out too fast and took Donnie hostage while he was messing with their getaway car!"

"What?!" Shen screamed.

Realizing what Mikey had just said, the others froze where they stood. Donnie decided that all he could do was tell them what happened.

"I was rigging the robbers getaway car to not work right," said Donnie, "While I was working, they came out and pointed a gun at me. When they saw Miwa, Raph, and Mikey, one of the grabbed me and held me hostage. Luckily he got distracted by his partner's frustration and I attacked him and escaped. After that, knocking them out and tying them up was easy."

"But the very idea that one of my babies was held at gunpoint!" Shen screamed; she like she was about to faint.

After hearing what had happened, Yoshi looked at his eldest son and asked, "Where were you during all of this, Leonardo?"

"I was on the roof of the next building giving them orders and making sure everything went smoothly," said Leo.

Yoshi pondered his son's explanation and then said, "I see. I think some form of punishment is in order."

"What?!" Raph asked.

"No way!" Mikey shouted, "That's bogus! We didn't do anything wrong!"

"No, Father is right" said Leo, "It's important for ninjas to learn the consequences of their actions."

"I am glad you agree, Leonardo," said Yoshi, "Because the one who is to be punished is you."

"Exactly," said Leo, and then he realized what his father had just said, "What?!"

" _You_ are the one who was truly in the wrong in this situation, and so _you_ are to be punished," said Yoshi.

"But why just me, father?" Leo asked, "Why not Raph and Mikey too? Better yet, why me _at all_?"

"The very fact that you do not understand the wrong you have done is reason enough to punish you," said Yoshi, "Leonardo, you are grounded for a week. And that means no Space Heroes."

"But, father-" Leo tried to protest.

"No 'buts'," said Yoshi, "That is my final word."

With that, Yoshi turned around and left to meditate in the dojo. Leo stood where he was, completely in shock; out of everyone, he was the only one being punished. But why? He had done nothing wrong as far as he knew, Raph and Mikey rushed in recklessly, so why were they not punished? Why?

* * *

The next day at school, the five siblings all arrived and prepared for their first classes. April saw them at their lockers and went over to greet them.

"Hey, guys!" said April, she then noticed Leo's sad expression and asked, "What's the matter with Leo?"

"Mother and Father grounded him," said Raph, slightly amused by the situation, "So he didn't get to watch Space Heroes last night."

"How come?" April asked.

"Because of Raph and Mikey," said Leo.

"Leo, you being grounded wasn't Raph's fault or Mikey's," said Miwa, closing her locker, "I don't think you understand why you're being punished."

"I understand completely," said Leo, grabbing his math book while thinking, ' _Father thinks I'm incompetent as a leader because I can't control my followers. But it's not my fault that they're a hothead like Raph and a blockhead like Mikey._ '

"Leo, Father didn't ground you because he thinks your an incompetent leader," said Donnie.

"What do _you_ know, Donnie?" Leo asked as he slammed his locker door closed. He froze at what Donnie said and then turned to his brother and asked, "Wait a minute. How did you know that was what I thought?"

"Didn't you just say that?" Donnie asked, sounding like it should be obvious.

Everyone looked at Donnie in confusion and Leo said, "No."

"I know what I heard, Leo," said Donnie, "I clearly heard you blowing off about thinking that father thinks you're a bad leader because you can't control your followers and you also called Raph a hothead and Mikey a blockhead. You guys did hear that right?"

Everyone stared at Donnie in shock when he said that. Donnie had no idea why they were staring at him that way. Even Raph and Mikey were too shocked to react to Leo calling them the things Donnie had said.

April finally broke the silence and said, "Donnie... Leo didn't say any of that."

"Huh?" Donnie asked, "That's funny. I was sure that I heard him- AHH!"

Suddenly, Donnie clutched the sides of his head as he screamed and then fell to his knees. Miwa immediately rushed to his side and asked, "Donnie, what's wrong?!"

"My head!" Donnie screamed, "It hurts!"

Miwa and April helped Donnie to his feet and Raph said, "He needs to go to the nurse right away."

"No kidding," said Leo, "Let's move."

With a nod, everyone started hurrying to get Donnie to the nurse's office so that she could help him. As they walked Donnie to the nurse's office, Leo could not help but wonder how Donnie knew exactly what he was thinking right when he was thinking it. He also remembered a similar incident with the Kraang before it took over Metalhead; what was happening to his little brother?

* * *

At the nurse's office Donnie was resting on the cot while his siblings and April stayed beside him out of concern. April took Donnie's right hand and held as he moaned and held his head with his left. Donnie's glasses had been removed and placed on the table next to the cot.

"It's alright Donnie," said April, "We're all here for you."

"Yeah, D," said Mikey, trying hard not to cry, "You're gonna be okay."

The nurse then came over with a bottle of aspirin and a cup of water and told Donnie's siblings and April, and said, "Of course he'll be okay. It's just a bad headache, all he needs is some aspirin and a little rest."

"Are you sure that's all it is?" Miwa asked skeptically, "That didn't seem like just a headache to me."

"Trust me, that's all it is," said the nurse as she gave Donnie two aspirin and the water, which he took, "Things like this tend to look more serious than they really are. You all shouldn't worry so much."

"It's just that this isn't the first time that something like this has happened," said Raph.

"It's actually the second time," said Leo.

"Well, I wouldn't worry too much about it," said the nurse, "Donatello here just needs to rest and I'm sure he'll be all better by his next class. So the rest of you can just get to your classes."

The others looked conflicted at first, until Donnie told them, "Go ahead, guys, I'll be okay."

"You sure?" Raph asked.

Donnie and said, "Yeah, just bring me my work from my first class so I don't fall behind."

Raph laughed at Donnie and said, " _You_ falling behind? Yeah, that'll be the day."

Donnie looked annoyed at Raph and first and then smiled when he realized that the statement was more complimentary than insulting.

"But, sure, we'll bring your school work so you can do it later," said Raph, "No worries."

And with that, the others all left for their first classes, leaving Donnie with the nurse. Sure enough, after some rest in the nurse's office, Donnie's headache was gone and he was ready to get to class. As the day went on, the others could not ignore the headache Donnie had; the fact that he had one during the battle against Metalhead and another at school, during both times he seemed to know exactly what someone was thinking, was too to be a coincidence. At the same time, Leo still had no idea what he did wrong that Yoshi decided to punish only him and nobody else.

* * *

After school, the others prepared to head home to gear up for their next nightly mission while Donnie prepared to head to Rockwell's lab for his job. The others were concerned at first, but Donnie assured them that he was all better and was perfectly capable of going to his job and working. After saying their goodbyes, everyone split up to go their separate ways. However, upon arrival home, the children prepared to drop off their bags and head to the lair until Yoshi made an announcement.

"You can't be serious!" Leo snapped.

"I am, Leonardo," said Yoshi, "You are to stay here during the time you are grounded. Meaning, no missions for the week."

"But the team needs me!" said Leo, "If I'm not there, who's gonna lead them?"

"I can lead!" said Mikey.

"I think I should lead," said Raph, "I'm the best fighter and clearly a better choice."

"Guys, being leader isn't a game," said Miwa, "It's a big responsibility."

"I will meditate," said Yoshi. He then closed his eyes for a second and then opened them and said, "I have made my decision. Your replacement leader will be... Miwa."

Leo, Raph, Mikey, and Miwa were all surprised at their father's choice; Miwa was honored, but still surprised that he chose.

"Why her, father?" Raph asked.

"She's the only one among the four of you who understands what being a leader truly means," said Yoshi.

"Don't you mean three?" Leo asked.

"No, Leonardo, I said the correct number," said Yoshi, "You also do not seem to understand what it means to be a leader."

"What?" Leo asked.

"Miwa, can I count on you to lead your brothers into battle and bring them back alive?" Yoshi asked.

"Yes, father," said Miwa, "You can count on me."

"Good," said Yoshi, "Now, get ready for your mission. Leonardo, after you complete your homework, you will be training in the dojo."

With that, Miwa, Raph, and Mikey left to gear up in the dojo while Leo sat on the couch, stunned by the situation. What could his father mean when he said he did not understand what it meant to be a leader?

* * *

While Miwa was being assigned leadership over the team, Donnie was hard at work filing papers away in the cabinet in Rockwell's office when said boss came in to check his progress. Dr. Rockwell was around his late thirties with black hair, a mustaches, and brown eyes.

"How are you doing, Donatello?" Rockwell asked.

"Almost done, Dr," said Donnie, "I just have a few more to go."

"Excellent," said Rockwell, "When you're done, I have something you can help me with."

"Okay," said Donnie, "I won't be much longer."

With that, Dr. Rockwell left Donnie alone to finish up filing away the papers. Once he was finished, Donnie closed the cabinet, locked it, and then turned to leave the room. Just as he was about to, he bumped into a man around the same age as Dr. Rockwell with black and grey hair and blue eyes. The man had a to-go cup in his hand.

"Oh, hi, Dr. Falco," said Donnie, "I didn't know you were coming today."

"I just had something I wanted Tyler's insight on," said Falco, "When I heard you were working today, I figured I'd bring you a hot chocolate."

"Thanks, sir," said Donnie, taking the offered cup, "I'll have it later. Dr. Rockwell needs my help right now."

"You sure?" Falco asked, "You look like you could use a break."

"I'm fine," said Donnie as he put the cup on the table, "Thanks again, Dr. Falco."

As Donnie was preparing to leave the room, he and Falco felt the room shake and heard an explosion. They both look confused at what happened. Dr. Rockwell then came rushing in with a shocked look on his face.

"Are you alright, Donatello?" Rockwell asked, and then noticed Falco and asked, "When did you get here, Victor?"

"I'm okay," said Donnie.

"I'm fine too, Tyler, thanks for asking," said Falco, sarcastically, "And as for your other question, I just got here about two minutes ago."

"What was that anyway?" Donnie asked.

"I'm not sure," said Rockwell, and then he started walking out the door and added, "You two wait here while I take a look."

"I'm going with you," said Donnie, and he got ready to follow close behind Rockwell.

He felt someone grab his arm and heard Falco say, "It's too dangerous; you should listen to Tyler and stay here where it's safe."

"But-" Donnie began, but Rockwell interrupted him.

"Victor's right, Donatello," he said, "It's best if you stay here and stay safe. Victor, if something goes wrong, I want you to get yourself and him out of here as fast as you can."

"Understood, Tyler," said Falco, and then Rockwell left the room to investigate the noise.

Donnie was paying so much attention to Rockwell leaving and Rockwell himself was focusing on his task, so neither of them noticed the sinister look that Falco was giving Donnie. After Rockwell left, however Donnie could swear he heard Falco say something.

' _Tyler, you're such a reckless fool,_ ' Falco thought.

"What'd you say that for?" Donnie asked as he looked back at Falco.

"Say what?" said Falco, "I didn't say anything."

"I could swear you called Dr. Rockwell reckless just now," said Donnie.

"I did not say that," said Faclo. His eyes widened in realization when he rethought what Donnie said. It was as if he knew something that he was not telling Donnie. He grabbed the cup from the table and said, "You probably just imagined; must be nerves or something. Here, drink this, it'll help."

"Okay," said Donnie, taking the cup from Falco. Donnie sipped the contents of the cup, unaware of the sinister look on Falco's face. After he swallowed his sip, Donnie let out a contented noise, and then looked at Falco and said, "Thanks, Dr. Falco."

"You're very welcome," said Falco.

"Do you think Dr. Rockwell's okay?" asked Donnie, who was suddenly starting to feel sleepy.

"Are you alright?" Falco asked.

"I don't know," said Donnie trying hard not to fall, "Suddenly... I feel really tired... I don't understand... What's wrong with me?"

"Probably the excitement," said Falco, catching Donnie before he fell to the floor, "Let me get you to a chair so you can rest."

"Okay," Donnie said, barely able to stay awake.

Falco led Donnie over a chair and sat him down in it. As Donnie was falling asleep, he saw Falco's sinister face and could swear he heard ' _Looks like the serum is almost complete. A dose of the latest version should do the trick._ ' As strange as it was that he heard Falco say such a thing, what was stranger was that Falco's mouth was not moving. He pondered the thought as he fell asleep in the chair.

After Donnie fell asleep, Falco pulled a syringe filled with a strangely colored substance out from his pocket. He smiled as he stuck the syringe in Donnie's neck and injected the substance into his bloodstream. Suddenly, the door flew open and Dr. Rockwell came in with a panicked look on his face, panting heavily.

"Victor, we have to get out of here now! There's a strange creature in here!" Rockwell practically screamed. He then noticed the unconscious teen and asked, "What happened to Donatello?!"

"Passed out from the excitement," said Falco, "Now, what's this about a dangerous creature?"

Rockwell had some doubts about what happened, however he brushed that aside and told Falco, "Some type of creature I've never seen before broke into the lab and is on a rampage."

"What kind of creature?" Falco asked.

Rockwell rushed over to Donnie and said, "I don't have time to explain right now. We have to move before it finds us. And in Donatello's current state, I don't think he'll be able to move on his own."

Rockwell picked Donnie up and turned in the direction of the door to carry him out when Falco said, "I'll take care of him."

Falco reached out to take Donnie off of Rockwell's hands, but Rockwell held Donnie away from Falco and said, "I appreciate the offer, Victor, but I've got this."

As Rockwell went ahead of with Donnie in his arms, Falco mentally cursed his colleague before following close behind; if the monster was that dangerous, he had planned on leaving Rockwell with it while he escaped with his life and his test subject, however, it seems as though he will have to get creative now. The two scientists and unconscious teen snuck around the hallway looking for the emergency exit and were just about to make their way there when something crashed through the wall and blocked their path. It growled and bared it's teeth at them as they backed away slowly.

* * *

Back at home, Leo was making progress on his math homework when Shen came in and noticed. She could tell that her oldest son was pondering something other than his math problems.

"Is something on your mind, Leonardo?" she asked.

Leo looked up at his mother and said, "I can't stop thinking about what father said. He said I don't understand what it means to be a true leader, but I don't know what he means."

"Well, think about your most recent mission," said Shen, "That might help you figure it out."

"What do you mean?" Leo asked.

"Think about what had happened and really think about the details," said Shen, "Think about where everyone was and what they were doing. And when I say that I mean every single one of the team, including the leader. You must also remember what the most important role of the leader is."

"I guess that helps," said Leo, starting to understand what she meant.

"Just some stuff to think about," said Shen, and then she grabbed her keys and said, "Well, I have to go. It's nearly close to time to bring Donatello home."

"Okay, see you later," said Leo.

"I won't be too long, my son," said Shen opening the door to leave, "No Space Heroes."

After Shen left, Leo rolled his eyes at the idea that his mother assumed that he would try to sneak a viewing of Space Heroes; as much as he wanted to, he did not want to make his punishment worse by disobeying his father. He looked over at the table and noticed the police scanner that Donnie had built the week before too keep tabs on crime in the city. Figuring that listening to the police reports in progress did not count as entertainment, Leo saw no harm in listening to it. So he turned the police scanner on and started listening to reports of car chases, laughing occasionally at the reckless or drunk drivers and the cops arguing and cursing.

"Leonardo," a deep voice said. Leo turned around and saw his father standing in the doorway, "I thought I told you that you were grounded."

"Father, it's just the police scanner," said Leo, "I was only listening to car chases. Besides, you only said no Space Heroes."

"Did you at least finish your homework?" Yoshi asked.

"Almost," said Leo.

"Well, then you're not finished, so urn that scanner off," said Yoshi, "Or at least turn it down; it's really loud."

"Okay," said Leo, turning what he thought was the volume dial.

"That's not the volume," said Yoshi, he then heard something and said, "Wait! Go back!"

Leo turned back to the channel he was on one second ago and listened to the report. According the the officer, a strange creature was on the lose all over the city. It latest attacking area was an address they knew all too well.

"Oh my god! That's where Dr. Rockwell's lab is!" Leo declared, "Donnie's there right now! We have to warn him!"

"We must warn your other siblings as well," said Yoshi, "I will contact Donatello, you contact Miwa."

Leo grabbed his cell phone and dialed his sister while his father called Donnie's cell phone from the kitchen phone. Leo waited impatiently for his sister to answer. When he finally heard her voice on the other end, Leo wasted no time in telling her.

"Listen, sis, I was listening to the police scanner and I heard that some kind of monster is loose in the city and is heading for the street where Rockwell's lab is," said Leo, "If we can't contact Donnie, you may have to get him and the doctor out."

" _Are you serious?!_ " Miwa asked.

"Yes, I am," said Leo, "Please, go there now. Donnie needs you."

" _Alright, Leo,_ " said Miwa, " _We'll go there now._ "

"Thank you," said Leo, and then he hung up his cell phone.

Yoshi turned to Leo with a paled expression and told him, "Donatello is not answering his phone."

Leo's eyes widened in shock as he said, " He must be in trouble. I have to help him."

Leo prepared to make a run for the door when Yoshi stopped him and said, "Miwa, Raphael, and Michelangelo will save Donatello. You will stay here."

Leo removed his father's hand from his shoulder and said, "I don't care that I'm grounded! Donnie's in danger! He needs my help! I can't just abandon him!"

It was in that moment that Leo realized what his father had been trying to tell him the whole time. Yoshi punished him because he himself did nothing while his team risked their safety. He could have been helping Miwa or watching Donnie's back, but he did neither.

"It seems as though you are starting to understand what a true leader is meant to do," said Yoshi.

"Yes," said Leo, "I wasn't thinking about helping the others, I was only thinking about telling them what to do."

"And if I permit you to go now, will you help them?" Yoshi asked.

"I'm going to help my team, my siblings, regardless of whether you say yes or no," said Leo.

Yoshi smiled at his oldest son and said, "That is just the kind of thing that I was hoping you would say. You may go."

Leo bowed and said, "Thank you, Sensei, father."

Leo then left the house to gear up before leaving to catch up with his siblings.

* * *

Miwa, Raph, and Mikey were nearing the street where Rockwell's lab was when a shadowy figure jumped in front of them. At first they assumed it was an enemy but when he stood up to face them, they saw that it was there brother Leo.

"Leo?" Mikey asked, "What're you doing here? You're grounded."

"Some things are just more important," said Leo, "Like rescuing our brother."

Miwa smiled and said, "You seem to have learned your lesson, little brother. And I think it would be fitting to allow you to be leader again."

"Are you sure?" Leo asked, "I mean, you wanted to be leader."

"That's true," said Miwa, "But I have a feeling that it would be best to let you try your hand at leading."

"And maybe do it right this time," Raph added.

"I plan to. Let's move!" said Leo, and then he looked at Miwa and said, "Oh and, Miwa, stop calling me your little brother; we're twins."

"Yeah, but I was born a few minutes earlier," said Miwa, preparing to move out, "So, that makes me older than you."

Leo groaned, having no argument, and rushed to head for the lab. He figured he could save whatever argument they had for after they stop the monster and save Donnie and Rockwell.

* * *

At the lab, it was quite a scene. Police were just outside the building trying to keep civilians out and trying to get inside to help those trapped inside. Among the panicking civilians was an understandably worried Shen trying to push her way through; she had just gone to pick Donnie up when she heard about the monster attack.

"Everyone, you need to stay back," said an officer through a megaphone, "The situation is very dangerous."

"Stay back?!" Shen yelled, "My son is in there!"

"I'm sorry ma'am," said the officer, "But I can't let you in, it's too dangerous. Believe me, I understand how you feel. I'm a parent myself."

Shen wanted to scream in frustration she caught a glimpse of her other four children sneaking in with their ninja stealth. Once she saw them, Shen prayed for her children's safety in the fight.

* * *

Inside the lab, Rockwell, Donnie, and Falco were still trying their hardest to evade the monster's attacks. The creature had their backs against the wall at one point, which caused Donnie to wake up and freak out. However, thinking quickly, Rockwell managed to create a smoke screen by mixing random chemicals together so that they could escape. They ran down the hallway until Rockwell found a room for them to hide in.

"Boy that was close," said Falco, "Nice thinking with the chemicals, Tyler."

"Thank you, Victor," said Rockwell. He looked down at Donnie and asked, "How did you sleep through most of that?"

"I don't know," Donnie confessed, "All I remember is drinking hot chocolate and then feeling tired before passing out."

Rockwell looked over at Falco and was about to ask him a question when suddenly, they all heard growling outside of their hiding place. They backed away from the door hoping that the creature would not notice them or pick up on their scents. Rockwell did not want Donnie to get hurt, so he grabbed him by his wrist and pushed him behind him.

"Stay behind me," said Rockwell.

Donnie was about to protest when the creature finally broke through the door. It had the head of a tiger, horns of a rhino, the torso of a bear, the lower legs of a bull, and instead of a tail, a viper. The creature growled and snarled as it approached the scientists and teenage boy. Rockwell was trying to look for a way to save himself, Falco, and Donnie, while Falco was looking for a way to ditch Rockwell to the monster and runaway with Donnie. The monster growled and then made a jump for the trio. They all closed their eyes waiting for the attack to come, but nothing happened.

They opened their eyes and saw the the monster had been punched in the face by a person dressed in black clothes and a red mask. Donnie knew right away that it was Raph, but Rockwell and Falco had no idea who he was. The monster fell to the ground with a thud and Raph stood proudly. Donnie looked carefully at Raph's knuckles and saw that he was wearing shuko spikes; that explained the impact of the punch.

"No monsters attack innocent people, especially kids, and get away with it," said Raph, and then he looked over at the trio and asked, "You guys okay?"

"Yeah," said Donnie, "Thanks to you."

"Not just me," said Raph.

As if on cue, Leo, Miwa, and Mikey came in. Donnie was pretty surprised to see Leo with them since he had been grounded, but he chose not to question them about that at the moment; he was just happy to see his family. Rockwell and Falco on the hand were confused as to why a bunch of kids were getting ready to fight a giant monster.

"You guys should get out of here," said Leo, "We'll handle this monster."

"Out of the question!" Rockwell snapped, "It's too dangerous for children!"

"I think these kids have the right idea, Tyler," said Falco, "I mean, that kid in the red mask took it down with one punch."

"They're still children, Victor!" Rockwell practically shouted, "I'm not about to leave them here where they're in danger!"

"I appreciate your concern for us, Doctor," said Miwa, "But believe me when I tell you that we've got this."

"Yeah, we've beaten plenty of crazy characters before," said Mikey, "This one's no different."

Rockwell was about to protest when Donnie grabbed his arm and said, "It's the truth, Doc. We have to get out of here while we still can."

Rockwell wanted to protest, but gave up and sighed as he said, "Alright, let's go."

Without hesitation, Falco rushed out the door to escape with Rockwell following close behind. Donnie told his siblings to be careful while he ran to catch up to the scientists. After Donnie and the scientists were at a safe distance, the other four ninjas got into fighting stances to face the monster. The monster itself had regained its' composure and was now staring at them and growling.

"Looks like someone could use some obedience training," said Leo.

The others groaned at Leo's pun and Miwa said, "Leo, there's a time and a place for everything!"

"Yeah, why do you hate just yelling get him?" Mikey asked.

"Come on, that was cool," Leo whined.

"It was not," said Raph. Suddenly, the monster raised its' giant paw and attempted to strike them down. Luckily they all jumped out of the way in time. "Maybe now's not the best time to talk about it."

"Right," said Leo, "Get him! Karai, help me distract it! Naoto, tie it down with your chain! Kurogane, you're gonna take it down!"

Everyone nodded at the plan and leaped into action. Leo and Miwa ran around the monster and kept its' attention on them. While it was distracted by the twins, it did not notice Mikey swinging his chain and wrapping it around it's body. Leo and Miwa helped Mikey hold the monster long enough for Raph to punch it repeatedly. Unfortunately, the forgot about the snake tail, which tried to strike at them. This caused the trio to let go of the chain and allow it to get free and knock Raph into the wall.

Mikey looked at the monster and said, "Boy, the Carnotaur is really tough and scary!"

the others raised eye brows and Miwa asked, "Carnotaur?"

"Yeah," said Mikey, "The attitude kinda reminds me of the Carnotaurs from _Dinosaur_ , so I thought it fit."

"Okay, that's fine," said Miwa, "But we should come up with another plan."

"How are we supposed to fight against a monster with teeth in both ends of it's body?!" Raph asked.

"We distract both ends at the same time," said Leo, "Karai, you take the head, Naoto, the tail, Kurogane, you and I will finish it off."

"You sure this will work?" Raph asked.

"Not entirely," said Leo, "But it's all we've got."

"Alright, I'm gonna trust you here," said Raph, "You are our leader after all."

Leo smiled at his brothers' words and then looked back at the Carnotaur. Next he signaled for Miwa and Mikey to go to their places of attack. Miwa and Mikey attack the head and tail as they were instructed, with difficulty, while Leo and Raph prepared to strike. Once Leo and Raph were sure that the Carnotaur had it's attention on Miwa and Mikey, Leo and Raph jumped out from hiding and struck it several times with the blades. Once the Carnotaur was finally down for the count, Leo led the team outside before the cops came in.

After the police came into the building, they found no sign of the ninja teens, only an unconscious strange creature. They shut the door and locked it in the room while one officer called animal control.

* * *

After the defeat of the Carnotaur, the siblings retreated into the shadows and went home to their father. After changing out of their ninja gear, Yoshi took the others to Rockwell's lab where they all met up with Shen and Donnie after the police had finished questioning Donnie, Rockwell, and Falco about what happened. Yoshi was relieved to see his son safe and sound; even though he was already told by his other children that he was safe.

"Thank goodness you are safe," said Yoshi, "I was so worried."

"Me too," said Shen, and then she turned to the scientists and said, "Dr. Rockwell, Dr. Falco, I can't thank you two enough for protecting my son."

"No need to thank us," said Rockwell.

"Oh I don't know, Tyler," said Falco, "We did save his life after all. I mean really, I still can't believe he slept through part of that attack."

Mikey looked surprised at his older twin and asked, "You slept through part of that monster attack?!"

Donnie's face turned red as he said, "Yes."

This statement got Rockwell's attention and he asked, "Oh, right, I almost forgot about that. How did you manage to sleep through part of the attack?"

"I'm not sure," said Donnie, "I just got a headache and then drank some hot chocolate that Dr. Falco offered. He said it would help."

Rockwell got a curious look on his face and glanced suspiciously at Falco. Falco himself told the family that he had no idea how that possibly could have happened after drinking hot chocolate. By this point, Rockwell had gotten a suspicious feeling about Falco, so he suggested that he and Falco head home for the night, leaving the Hamato family to talk amongst themselves.

After the scientists were gone, Leo told his family, "I'm sorry that I forgot what being a leader is about."

"That is alright, Leonardo," said Shen, "What's important is that you remembered in time to save your brother from harm."

"Yeah, but try not to forget again in the future," said Raph, "Miwa's way too bossy."

"Hey!" Miwa snapped.

"Did I miss something?" Leo asked.

"While Miwa was leader, she bossed us around non stop!" Mikey whined, "It was a nightmare!"

Leo looked amused at his sister and said, "Guess I'm not the only one who needs a lesson in leadership."

Miwa punched Leo in the arm and said, "Shut up."

"There's still a couple of things I don't get," said Raph, "Where did that monster-"

"Carnotaur, bro, Carnotaur," Mikey corrected.

"Right," said Raph, in annoyance, "Where did the _Carnotaur_ , come from? And what was it doing here?"

Everyone pondered the question for a bit until Donnie said, "I think it was a Kraang experiment. And it probably escaped from them and wound up here by chance."

"That sounds plausible," said Leo, "But is it gone for good?"

"That I'm not sure of," said Donnie.

"Personally, I hope so," said Miwa.

"True," said Raph, "But if it ever shows up again, we'll be ready to take it down."

"Awe yeah!" Mikey cheered, "Ninja power!"

Leo slapped his hand on Mikey's mouth and said, "Careful what you shout in public. We never know who could be listening."

"Oops," said Mikey, "Sorry."

"Now that all of this excitement is over, I would like to head home," said Shen.

"Yes, I think that would be best," said Yoshi, "Oh, and Leonardo, you are no longer grounded."

"Yes!" Leo cheered.

"But you still have homework to finish when you get home," said Yoshi, making Leo frown, "But that can wait until after we have dinner. And given the circumstances, I think it might be easier to just get some pizza."

The children cheered and then went to the car with their parents, after Donnie called to Rockwell that they were leaving of course.

* * *

As the Hamato family headed home with pizza, an animal control van drove through the city with the Carnotaur inside. They had just turned a corner when another van pulled up in front of them so fast that they had to screech to a halt. A group of identical men in black suits emerged from the van and walked towards theirs. One of the men grabbed the car door and ripped it off of its hinges and then pointed a strange looking gun at the driver and passenger.

"Leave the vehicle at once or Kraang will be forced to do what is known as shoot," said the man, a Kraang.

The driver and passenger screamed and ran for their lives at the threat. The Kraang in turn went to the back of the van and forced it open. They found the Carnotaur in chains and unconscious, obviously under heavy tranquilizers. They proceeded to drag the creature out of the van and towards their own. Two of the Kraang stood by to talk two each while the rest saw to the creature.

"How did the creature that was an experiment of Kraang escape the place where Kraang held it?" the first Kraang asked the second.

"The creature proved to be too powerful for Kraang to keep contained," the second explained, "Thus the creature overpowered the ones known as the guards and escaped into the city. This led to the creature attacking the city."

"So this experiment has proven to be that which is known as a failure," said the first Kraang.

"Not necessarily," said a third Kraang, "The sheer power of the creature could prove useful in the invasion."

"Kraang, the creature is too dangerous," said the first Kraang, "It could prove to be a danger to Kraang as well as the enemies of Kraang."

"Kraang is correct, Kraang," said the second Kraang, "Keeping the creature alive could endanger our kind more than help them."

"A device can be made to keep the creature under control," said the third, "Then Kraang can use the creature against enemies of Kraang."

The first two Kraang thought about what the third and said and figured it might be worth a try. So the first kraang said, "Very well, we will keep the creature alive. But if you prove to be wrong, the creature will be put down."

"Understood," said the third Kraang.

The three joined the others in the van and the van drove away into the night.

* * *

A report made its way to the morning news the very next day about the animal control men being attacked by strange men in another van. The ninja teens, their parents, and April all realized right away that it was the work of the Kraang. Knowing that they have the Carnotaur made them worry about the future


	12. Nobody's Perfect

**Nobody's Perfect**

After the news about the Carnotaur, the family remained vigilant in their day to day life in case said creature got away from the Kraang. In the meantime, it had been a while since Raph and Casey had been able to hang out, so Raph was excited when Casey had asked him to go catch a movie that Saturday; they had decided to eat some pizza and then head to the theater to catch "Attack of the Werecats", a new horror movie about cat people that attacks humans in a city.

Finally, Saturday had come and Raph was ready to meet up with Casey and see the movie. Just as he was about to leave the house, however, he heard Leo call out, "Hey, Raph!"

"Yeah, Leo!" Raph called back.

"I have to help out with a group project and Miwa has gymnastics practice," Leo said, "You think you can help mother in the antique shop?"

Raph flinched and turned around as he called back, "Leo! I was gonna go to the movies with Casey!"

"You can do that tomorrow," Leo called back and then came into view as he continued, "Mother needs help today."

"So have Mikey help her," said Raph.

"Mikey bothers the customers," said Leo.

"So that automatically puts me on deck?" Raph asked.

"Raph, mother needs help, how about quit being inconsiderate and do what I say?" said Leo.

"Oh, _I'm_ being inconsiderate?" Raph asked, "What about _you_?"

"What _about_ me?" Leo asked.

"You're the one who doesn't seem to be taking _my_ feelings into consideration," said Raph, "You know I've been planning to go to the movies with Casey all week!"

Leo was about to retort when Donnie came into the room and said, "No need to worry, Leo. I'm helping mother in the shop. Raph, you can go."

Raph smiled at Donnie and said, "Thanks, bro. I owe you one."

"No need," said Donnie, "It's what brothers do." and then Raph left.

"Don't you have some projects you wanted to work on?" Leo asked.

Donnie simply shrugged and said, "They can wait. Raph hasn't had a chance to hang out with his best friend in a while and they've been planning this day all week."

Leo smiled at Donnie and said, "That was very kind of you, Donnie."

"I learned from the best," said Donnie.

"Really?" Leo asked, "Who?"

"Mother, obviously," said Donnie, and then he left to help Shen in the shop.

"Guess I should've figured," Leo said to himself, "And I probably owe Raph an apology."

* * *

Raph and Casey met up at Antonio's Pizzeria and shared a pie together. While eating, Casey noticed Raph looked mad and decided to ask why.

"What's wrong, Raph?" Casey asked.

"What makes you think something's wrong?" Raph asked.

"Raph, we've been friends for years," said Casey, "I can read you like a book."

Raph sighed and told his best friend, "I'm sorry, Casey. I'm just a little mad at Leo because he wanted me to cancel the movies to help mother."

"You could've," said Casey, "I would've understood."

"Nah, Donnie said he'd help mother," said Raph, "And it wasn't that I didn't wanna help my mother, it just felt like Leo wasn't taking my feelings into consideration before telling me to do that."

"Maybe Leo realized he was wrong and will apologize if you call him," said Casey.

"Wouldn't count on it," said Raph, "You know Leo, he rarely admits it when he's wrong about something."

Casey laughed and said, "Yeah, like when he thought Dustin Hoffman was in Star Wars. We kept telling him he wasn't, but he wouldn't admit that he was wrong."

Raph laughed and said, "Yeah, he actually had to look it up online."

As the two friends laughed at the memory, Raph forgot all about being mad at Leo. And so they finished their lunch and left to see their movie. As they were getting ready to enter the theater, Raph heard his cellphone and checked to see who it was. Upon seeing his older brother on the caller-ID, Raph sent him to voicemail and then turned off his phone. When Casey asked him what was up, Raph just said that it was nothing and went inside with Casey.

After about two hours, the boys came out of the theater having enjoyed the movie they had just seen.

"Wasn't that movie awesome?!" Raph asked.

"Sure was!" said Casey, "I especially liked the part where the hero was almost killed but he knocked the monster back at the last second!"

"But I can't believe they made his girlfriend a Werecat," said Raph, "Give me a break."

"Hey! Give us a break! We haven't seen it yet!" shouted a man from the line, "Thanks a lot, big mouths!"

As the man and his girlfriend entered the theater, Raph and Casey chose to ignore what just happened and leave. As they were Leaving, Raph decided to check his phone to see if anyone called while he was in the theater. He turned on his phone and found he had a missed called from his sister. Figuring it might be important, Raph called her back.

" _Raph?_ " said Miwa on her end.

"Yeah, sis," said Raph, "Sorry I missed your call. You know how it is with the theater and cellphones."

" _Never mind,_ " said Miwa, " _We need you to come home right away. Donnie's not doing to well._ "

"What's wrong with him?" Raph asked in concern, "Is it another headache?"

" _Sort of. It wasn't just a headache,_ " said Miwa, " _It's kind of hard to explain over the phone. Could you please come over?_ "

"I'll be right there," said Raph, and then he hung up his phone, "I gotta go, Casey. Donnie's sick."

"Oh man," said Casey, "Well, tell him I hope he feels better."

"I'll do that, Casey," said Raph, and then he took off for home.

* * *

Once Raph got home, he found Donnie asleep on the couch while his family was gathered around him. Mikey noticed Raph come in and ran straight to him.

"Raph! I'm so glad you're here!" said Mikey, and then added in a fast pace, "While you were gone, Donnie was helping mother in the shop and was fine at first. But while he was helping a costumer who wanted to buy a lamp he got a headache worse than the last time and then he started screaming and moaning and then he couldn't stand up right and then he threw up on the floor and passed out."

As Mikey breathed steadily, Raph took in all of the information. Yoshi then joined in by saying, "This happened just after your sister came home from practice. She in turn called you and your brother."

Raph looked sadly at Donnie and said, "I should've left my phone on and switched it to vibrate."

Shen looked over at her second son and said, "Honey, no one blames you. None of us could have predicted this."

Yoshi then put a hand on Raph's shoulder and said, "And you did the right thing by checking your phone and coming straight home when you found out what had happened."

Raph looked up at his father and saw him smiling, which made Raph smile back. And then he looked back at Donnie, who was still asleep on the couch, and frowned in worry. He walked over to Donnie and knelt down beside him, inwardly begging him to wake up soon. Leo then joined him and sat beside.

"I'm sorry for the way I acted earlier," said Leo.

"I'm sorry too, Leo," said Raph, "If I had answered your call, I might've gotten here sooner."

Before more could be said, they both heard a groan and looked over to see Donnie waking up. As Donnie opened his eyes, his vision was blurry at first, but he was able to make out two figures in front of him. He also recognized their voices as his older brothers as they called out for their parents and other two siblings. Once his vision was clear, Donnie saw Leo and Raph and smiling in relief as his family joined them in gathering around him.

'I hope he's okay,' he heard Mikey's voice say, although his mouth was not moving, ' _He's starting to look kinda pale. Almost like a ghost. Oh jeez! Is he gonna haunt me if he finds out I ate all of his peanut butter cups?!_ '

"How are you feeling, little brother?" Miwa asked.

Donnie groaned and answered, "Weird."

"Donatello, this is getting out of hand," said Yoshi, "Your condition is getting worse more than better."

"Your father is right dear," said Shen, "I'm sorry, but I think we may have to take you to the doctor."

Donnie furiously shook his head and said, "No need. I'll be okay."

"Donatello, you got dizzy, threw up, and fainted. We can not just ignore that," said Shen, "I'm making you an appointment to see the doctor as soon as possible and that's the end of the matter."

"But-" Donnie tried to say.

"No buts," said Shen, "You are _going_ to the doctor."

Donnie sighed and said, "Okay."

With that said, Shen went to make an appointment for Donnie for the doctor as soon as possible and Leo helped Donnie get to bed to rest up until dinner; Mikey even offered to read Donnie a story, which Donnie decided to let Mikey do even though Miwa reminded Mikey that Donnie is fifteen and Raph remembered to give Donnie Casey's message about hoping he gets better. Leo had suggested that Donnie take the night off from patrol that night, which he accepted after his family insisted. Yoshi was just getting ready to head down to the lair to train when he found Raph sitting on the couch. Something seemed to be troubling Raph, so Yoshi took it upon himself to find out.

"What is the matter, Raphael?" Yoshi asked.

Raph looked up at his father and said, "What're you talking about?"

"Raphael, you can not fool me," said Yoshi, "I can tell when you are upset about something."

"Because you're a ninja master?" Raph asked.

"Partly," said Yoshi, "But mostly because I'm your father and I have raised you your whole life."

"Oh," said Raph, "Well, I just can't stop feeling guilty about what happened."

"Raphael, we already told you that what happened to your brother was not your fault," said Yoshi, "And no one blames you. None of us could have foreseen what happened."

"But still," Raph began, "I had my phone off and missed Miwa's call to me when Donnie needed me. I'm probably the worst brother ever."

"Raphael, you were merely following the rules of the theater," said Yoshi, "You are a kind and caring brother and I am proud to call you my son."

Yoshi then left Raph to think over those words. However, as kind as his father's words were, Raph still could not shake the guilt he was feeling.

* * *

The nightly patrol started out fairly standard; just a car jacking gone wrong, a couple of muggings, and a gang fight, nothing all that surprising. At times they had half expected to encounter either the Kraang or the Foot Clan, but neither had made an appearance as of yet. However, the Raph's mind was more focused on what had happened that day. He felt he had let Donnie down by not being there right then; no matter how much his family told him otherwise.

"Okay, team, just one last sweep and then we head home," said Leo.

"Okay," said Miwa and Mikey, but Raph was silent.

Leo noticed Raph's silence and asked, "Is something wrong, Raph? You've been kinda distracted throughout the whole patrol and now you're just silent."

"I just can't stop thinking about what happened today," said Raph, "Donnie got really sick all because I didn't wanna break my movie plans."

"Raph, we already told you that that wasn't your fault," said Leo, "None of us could've predicted what happened."

"Yeah," said Mikey, "And Donnie was the one who offered to help mother, remember?"

"Still, I might've been there to help him if I had just switched my phone to vibrate instead of turning it off," said Raph.

Leo groaned and was about to say something else when Miwa said, "Wait, I think I get it now. Raph's feeling guilty."

"But we keep saying he didn't do anything wrong," said Mikey.

"When someone feels guilty, it often doesn't matter how much praise they get," said Miwa, "All of the praise in the world means nothing if people don't feel it inside. Raph's the only who can make things right for himself."

"What would that take?" Leo asked.

"I'm not really sure," Raph answered, and then he felt a vibration in his pocket. He reached in and pulled out his phone and saw that he had a text from Donnie. His eyes widened in shock as he read the message, and then he turned to the others and said, "We have to get back home! Mother and Donnie are in trouble!"

The others all jerked at the message and then Leo shouted, "Let's move!"

And then they raced home to help their mother and brother, Leo even messaged Yoshi to tell him so that he could help them as well.

* * *

Back at the antique store, Donnie was helping Shen clean up and lock up for the night and Yoshi was making a run to the store for some ice cream because they were low. As he was sweeping the floor, Donnie could not stop thinking about earlier that day. He was just helping a costumer pick out a lamp for their office and all of a sudden he felt dizzy and nauseous. Just before he passed out, he could have sworn he heard other peoples thoughts; they were thinking things like "Is he Okay?", or "He doesn't look too good," or "What's wrong with him?" This sort of thing had been happening a lot lately and he could not understand why.

"Is everything alright, honey?" Shen asked.

"I just can't stop thinking about what happened," said Donnie, "Why does this keep happening to me?"

"That is why you are going to the doctor," said Shen, "To find out."

"I know, but the headaches and nausea aren't the only problem; I keep feeling I can read other people's thoughts," said Donnie, "And that should be impossible."

"I have no idea what to make of that but-" Shen began, and then stopped when she heard the bell ring meaning someone had come in. She turned around to see who it was and said, "Sorry, we're just getting ready to close."

Shen gasped when she saw that it was the Purple Dragons, and they were armed with bats. They laughed sinsterly as they approached the startled woman and her son as their leader, Fong, spoke.

"Oh, I'm sure you can make an exception for us, lady" he said, coming closer to Shen and she in turn pushed Donnie behind her to protect him.

"Leave this place now," Shen demanded, as Donnie was secretly reaching into his pocket for his cell phone.

"Oh don't worry, we won't be long," said Fong, "Just as soon as you hand over all the money in your safe, whatever's left in the register, and the jewels here."

As Fong was threatening Shen, he was unaware that Donnie had ducked under the counter and crawled away to another table. Next, he reached his contacts list and clicked the first name he saw, Raph. As he started texting him what was happening, Donnie did not notice that another Purple Dragon, Sid, saw what he was doing. He was able to send the text just before Sid got closer.

"You will get nothing from here!" Shen shouted, "Now go!"

"Hey, Fong!" Sid said, "Look what I found. A hostage."

Shen, Fong, and Tsoi looked over and saw Sid with his left arm wrapped around Donnie's neck and in his right hand was Donnie's cell phone.

"Let me go!" Donnie choked out, whilst secretly thinking, ' _Why do these kind of things always happen to me?_ '

Shen glared at him and said, "Release my son!"

"Do what I said, and we will," said Fong.

Tsoi looked closely at Donnie and asked, "Hey, isn't that one of those kids that gives us trouble?"

"Oh yeah," said Fong, recognizing Donnie. He smirked as he added, "Not so tough when your brothers and sister aren't here to protect to are ya?"

"Who says I need them to protect me?" Donnie asked.

Then, without warning, Donnie elbowed Sid in the stomach. The blow caused Sid to release Donnie from his grasp and Donnie took advantage and knocked him down to the floor with a kick. Tsoi tried to take Donnie down, but Donnie dodged his moves and beat him. Fong charged ahead only for Donnie to knocked him down easily. He was having an easy time handling himself until Tsoi and Sid both grabbed and held him down on the floor. Donnie tried to get them off, but both Purple dragons were too much for him.

Fong knelt down to his level and smirked as he said, "You were saying?" he then turned to Shen and said, "Now, unless you want anything bad to happen to your kid, I'd suggest doing as I said."

Shen was about to comply when a new voice shouted, "Booyakasha!"

The purple dragons barely had time to react before Sid and Tsoi were knocked away from Donnie by Raph and Mikey. They then helped Donnie back up just as Leo and Miwa entered.

"Ninjas?" the Pruple Dragons asked.

"Yeah, ninjas" said Mikey, as he and Raph ushered Donnie over to Shen, who embraced him.

"Don't you guys know that stealing is against the law?" Leo asked.

Raph and Miwa rolled their eyes at Leo and Mikey and Donnie smacked their foreheads. Shen simply shocked her head at he eldest son's chosen line.

"Tell someone who cares," said Fong.

Miwa stepped forward and said, "Look, the point is that either you guys leave this place or we'll have to get violent."

"Ooh, I'm so scared," Sid said and then he and the other dragons laughed their butts off.

Raph cracked his knuckles at the dragons said, "I would be."

Before they could react, Raph charged at them and punched Sid in the face, knocking him into the wall. Tsoi and Fong tried to strike at Raph, only to have Miwa quickly trough he teesen at Tsoi arm and cut him and then summer-salt and kick Fong outside into the street. While he was in the street, Fong looked up and saw that he was not alone. Right in front of him was Yoshi, looking down at him angrily with a grocery bag containing a half gallon of ice cream.

"I assume you are one of the men giving my family a hard time," said Yoshi.

"What do you wanna hear?" Fong asked. Yoshi simply responded by pounding his fist.

Back inside, Miwa and Raph were preparing to attack Tsoi together and he was backing into the counter. Just as he was searching for a weapon to use, something really hard hit him in the head and he fell to the floor unconscious. When he fell, Miwa and Raph saw that it was Donnie who had hit him with what looked like a rolled up poster.

Donnie smiled and said, "Not exactly my usual weapon, but it works."

"How long have you had that here?" Mikey asked.

"I bought this poster yesterday to go in my lab but forgot that I left it here," said Donnie, "And I'm glad I was so forgetful that day."

"What's in that thing? A pipe or something" Leo asked, "No poster should be strong enough to knock a man out."

"Oh yeah, it cost a little extra at the store," Donnie explained, "It's made of sheet metal."

"Sheet metal?!" everyone asked in surprise.

"Why would you buy a poster made out of sheet metal?" Miwa asked.

"In case someone decided to use it for shuriken practice," said Donnie shooting a look at Mikey, who let out an embarrassed laugh. Donnie unrolled the poster to reveal the image of a man in a business suit standing in front of the Stark Industries logo and continued, "It took me forever find one of these that I liked."

"You sure get sensitive about a poster of some guy," said Mikey.

Donnie rolled his eyes and said, "That's Howard Stark, the founder of Stark Industries."

"Sorry, man. So, anyone know what happened to Fong?" Mikey asked, and then he came flying into the store and landed with a thud unconscious, followed by Yoshi, "Oh, there he is."

"I think we can let police handle them from here," said Yoshi.

"Good idea," said Miwa, "We'll go get changed while you guys take care of that."

Shen agreed and has her and her brothers go upstairs to change out of their ninja clothes while she called the police and Yoshi restrained the Purple Dragons. When the police came, the family told what happened but lied about not knowing who stopped them; they had to keep their family secret after all.

Once the police came and took the dragons, Yoshi expressed how proud he was of his children for rushing back to stop the Purple Dragons from hurting their family. While the kids accepted their praise, Donnie decided to voice his own gratitude.

"Hey, guys," said Donnie, "I just wanted to thank you all for rushing back to help. So, thank you, Miwa, Leo, Raph, Mikey."

"Hey, what's family for, right?" said Mikey.

"Yeah, what Mikey said," said Miwa and Leo nodded.

"I'm just glad you and mother are okay," said Raph, and secretly thought, ' _I'd hate it if I wasn't there when you really needed me again_.'

"Raph, you don't have to feel bad anymore," said Donnie, "You're aloud to do things with your friends when you want to, and you're aloud to make mistakes."

"Huh?" Raph asked, "Hey, wait a minute? Did you have one of you mind reading moments again?"

"I didn't have to," said Donnie, "It's written all over your face."

Raph blushed red a little and Shen decided to talk to him, "Your brother has a point, Raphael. Nobody's perfect. What's important is that you learn from your mistakes."

"Yeah, and it's not like you avoided Miwa's call on purpose," said Mikey, "That would've made you a real jerk."

"I would never do such a thing!" Raph snapped, "Okay, Leo's I did. But that was a mistake. I was just mad, that's all. I never wanted Donnie to get sick; I would never want that to happen!"

"And that's how we know we can always count on you," said Leo.

"Maybe Donnie can count on you to go with him and father, to the doctor tomorrow," said Miwa, "Donnie might get nervous and could use his big brother; needle phobia, you know."

"I'm not scared of needles!" Donnie snapped.

Raph simply shrugged and said, "Sure. Why not? After all, someone's gotta take care of Donnie."

"Raph!" Donnie growled, while his other siblings laughed at him.

As their children fought, Yoshi and Shen were glad to see that Raph was back to normal. And they were also worried about Donnie's doctor appointment; what would he find when he looked? Would they find anything that could explain what has been going on?

* * *

 **Author's Note:** And there's my chapter. I hope it was worth the wait. I'll try to not take as long in the future. However, I can't promise any exact dates. After all, one can't rush these things.


	13. Secrets Revealed

**Secrets Revealed**

On the day of the doctor's appointment, Donnie sat in the waiting room of the office with a look of embarrassment on his face. Raph noticed this and mistook it for nervousness, so he decided to comfort his brother.

"Don't worry, Donnie," said Raph, "The doctor is nothing to be nervous about. If he needs a blood sample, which I doubt he will, you can hold my hand for the pain."

"Thanks, Raph," said Donnie, "But I'm really not that nervous. It's more embarrassment about the person I'm sitting next to."

"Donatello, don't talk about your brother that way," said Yoshi, not looking away from the magazine he was reading.

"I wasn't talking about Raph, father," said Donnie.

"The only two people next to you are Raphael on your left and me on your right," said Yoshi.

That was when he realized that Donnie meant him and looked away from the magazine to shoot his son a disapproving look; though it was hard to take him seriously since he was wearing a Yankees baseball cap and ridiculous looking sunglasses. He also had chosen to wear blue a t-shirt with "#1 Dad" written on it.

"He's got a point there, father," said Raph, "I mean, you could've gone with literally anything in your closet and you chose that stuff."

"You know full well the situation our family is in," said Yoshi.

"Yeah, but still," said Raph, "You didn't have to pick the most ridiculous shirt in your closet, or those sunglasses, or that cap. What's next, one of those fake mustaches you see guys wearing in those old movies where the character is on a stakeout?"

"Enough, Raphael," said Yoshi, slightly annoyed.

As annoyed as Yoshi was by that comment, he did agree with Raphael that his shirt was quite ridiculous. Sometimes he had to wonder what Michelangelo was thinking when he gave it to him for Father's Day four years ago; probably his own humorous way of telling him how great a father he is.

As they waited, Donnie leaned towards Raph and whispered, "How can anyone be so vain?"

"What?" Raph asked, not understanding what Donnie meant.

Donnie pointed to a woman looking at a home decor magazine and said, "That woman over there in the green blouse just went on about how certain she is about her physical is going to be perfect as always; not one pound over weight or one inch of her waist wider. Some people are just so obnoxious that way."

Raph raised an eyebrow and said, "Uh, Donnie, she didn't say that."

"What are you talking about?" Donnie asked, "She just said that loud enough for the whole office to hear."

"No she didn't," said Raph, "She didn't say anything. Nobody did until you whispered to me."

"Huh? But I could've sworn-" Donnie began, and then was cut off by the doctor calling him in.

He and his father and brother got up from their seats and went inside to meet with the doctor, Dr. Vincent. When they met with him, he had Donnie sit on the examination table and had him explain what was going on.

"Alright, Donatello, tell me what's been bothering you," said the doctor.

"I've been having headaches, nausea, and I keep getting dizzy for no real reason," Donnie explained.

"I see," said the doctor. He then turned to Yoshi and said, "Mr. Kurama, I'm going to run a few tests on your son. Is that okay with you?"

Yoshi nodded and said, "If it will help us to find out what is wrong with him."

Dr. Vincent did some standard tests such as the reflex test, the eye exam, and looking inside his ear. He had expected to find something strange or unusual, however, everything looked normal.

"I don't see anything physically wrong with him," said Dr. Vincent, "Did this happen to coincide with anything?"

"He did recently get a job as Dr. Rockwell's lab assistant," said Raph.

"Could just be exhaustion or fatigue," said the doctor, "You from working too hard."

"I don't think so," said Donnie, "This feels nothing like those things."

"Is there another test you can run?" Yoshi asked.

"I could try a blood test. But it could take me a few days to get any kind of results," said the doctor.

"If it can help to understand what is going on with my son, I will do anything," said Yoshi.

"Okay," said Dr. Vincent, and then turned to his patient and added, "Donatello, this may hurt a little, so if you feel like you need to squeeze something, say so."

Donnie was about to say that was not necessary when Rah said, "Just take my hand and squeeze it, little bro."

"Okay, Raph," said Donnie.

Dr. Vincent went to the table and came back with a syringe and a piece of ribbon. The doctor tied the ribbon around Donnie's arm and Raph took his little brother's hand in his. As the doctor brought the syringe closer to Donnie's arm, Donnie closed his eyes and squeezed his older brother's hand as hard as he could. He felt a tiny pinch as the needle went into his skin and took blood, and then it was removed and a Band-Aid was placed on top of the puncture mark after the ribbon was removed.

"And that's it," said Dr. Vincent, "I'll call you when I get the results back."

"Very well," said Yoshi, as Donnie let go of Raph's hand.

Donnie then got off the table and left the room with his father and brother. As they were leaving, Yoshi, Raph, and Donnie decided to have a bit of a private conversation.

"How come you didn't tell him the last problem?" Raph asked, referring to the mind reading.

"I thought about it," said Donnie, "But then I thought that telling him I thought I was hearing people's thoughts made me sound like I was crazy."

"Good call," said Raph, after thinking over what Donnie said, "He might've just sent you to a psychiatrist or had you get a CAT scan or something like that."

"Indeed," said Yoshi, "For the time being, it is best to keep that part a secret."

As they were leaving the waiting room, they heard the name "Amelia Sanford" being called and the woman that Donnie called "vain" before going back to see the doctor. As she was passing by them, Donnie thought he heard her voice say ' _'Bout time. Does he think I have no plans or something? I do have a life._ '

Donnie rolled his eyes and said, "She also has an attitude."

"Huh?" Raph asked.

"She just said-" Donnie started to say until he realized that he was the only one who heard her. He shook his head and said, "Never mind. It was probably nothing."

With that, Yoshi, Raph, and Donnie left the office together, got into Yoshi's car, and drove back home. Once they got home, Yoshi told Shen, Miwa, Leo, and Mikey what the doctor told them about Donnie and that he had to take some blood and that it would take time to get the results. Miwa felt mildly annoyed that they had to wait even longer to find out what was wrong with Donnie, however, she felt it might be worth it to wait for the right results.

* * *

Elsewhere, unbeknownst to the Hamato clan, their old/new enemy was speaking with his followers in his lair. He was not at all pleased with their lack of progress in locating Yoshi, Shen, or their children. They had been searching for them ever since their arrival in the city and they have failed every time, and it was starting to make the Shredder very unhappy.

At the moment, Bradford and Xever were in the Shredder's throne room kneeling before him whilst listening to their master scold them for their failure. Four Foot ninjas stood by with spears in hand in case anything got ugly; or maybe just because Shredder thought it made him look more fearsome to have soldiers posted nearby.

Shredder looked down at his two minions and said, "Hamato Yoshi's disciples are mere children. And yet they managed to defeat you?!"

"They may have been kids, but they were also very resourceful!" Bradford defended, "But I almost had them."

"Until you led us into their trap!" Xever snapped accusingly, "I told you that plan wouldn't work! But did you listen? No!"

"You have a better way to find Hamato?!" Bradford asked.

"Silence!" the Shredder snapped.

The Shredder strode slowly, yet frighteningly, down the stairs that led to his throne and the approached Bradford. He unsheathed the claws from his gauntlets and pointed them underneath Bradford's chin, making him back away quickly. As Bradford got a feeling of dread, the Shredder voiced his disappointment in him in a dark threatening tone.

"You were such a promising student, Bradford," the Shredder said, "I expected much more from you."

"Sensei, please, give me another chance!" Bradford begged, "I will not fail you again!"

The Shredder held his claws where they were for a moment, and then he retracted them, allowing Bradford to breathe a sigh of relief. And then he spoke, "No, you won't," he turned to Xever and said, "Xever, you are in charge now."

Xever smiled with pride at being put in charge, while Bradford glared and snapped, "I won't take orders from this gutter trash!"

"Is that so?" Shredder asked in a dark tone while shooting a death glare.

Bradford shrank a little in his place as he said, "Unless you want me to, master."

"I have the purple Dragons under my full control. By now they are keeping their eyes peeled for those ninjas," said Xever, "And when I find them, I will take pleasure in eliminating them where they stand."

"No," said Shredder, "You will bring them to me alive. With luck, any one of them could have information on Tang Shen and her children."

"Very well," said Xever, "If that is what you wish."

And with that, the two turned to leave the throne room to do the job they were given. Just as they were leaving, however, they heard a young female voice laugh and looked over to see a young girl around the age of fifteen or sixteen with long black hair and hazel eyes enter the throne room. She wore traditional Foot Clan kunouichi armor and had a tanto sword attached to her belt.

"You got beat up by kids, Bradford?" the girl said, "Oh my, how embarrassing that must be for you."

Bradford glared at the girl and said, "Shut up, Kuro!"

The girl, Kuro, laughed again and strolled over as she added, "You'd think that after training under a great ninja master you'd be able to handle some kids. I mean, really, they were about my age and trained by a lesser master, but you couldn't even take one down? And here I thought you were one of the top pupils."

"I said shut up, you little brat!" Bradford snapped.

"Stand down, Bradford! You will show my daughter proper respect!" the Shredder declared, "She is my most prized pupil, one of the finest ninjas I have ever trained, and at only sixteen."

Kuro smiled proudly at her father's praise and Bradford bowed before his master and said, almost forcefully, "My apologies, master. It won't happen again."

"Be sure that it doesn't," said Shredder. He then turned back to his daughter and said, "Kuro, I am pleased that you arrived. I may need your help if I am to destroy Hamato Yoshi."

"I will not fail to do my part, father," she said with a bow. She then turned her attention to Xever and said, "So, Xever, you think you'll get any results this time? I mean, if ninjas couldn't take those guys, what makes you think street gangs will do any better?"

"Yee have little faith," said Xever, "You will see. Once the Purple Dragons find them, the Foot Clan will be victorious."

As the two men started to walk away, Kuro cleared her throat and said, "Probably should've told you this earlier, but, those guys can't help you. They were arrested a few days ago for robbing an antique store."

Xever paused in mid walk, looked back at Kuro and asked, "WHAT?!"

"Yeah," said Kuro, slightly amused at the situation, "And I don't think they'll be out for sometime."

Shredder crossed his arms across his chest and said, "It would seem as though you have failed before you could even start, Xever. I should have known better than to put my trust in you."

"Master, please, this was not my fault," Xever begged, "I had no way of knowing of this."

"And that was your mistake," said Shredder. He then turned to Kuro and told her, "You are the only one I can count on, my daughter. You will be in charge."

Kuro bowed in respect and said, "Thank you, father."

And with that, Shredder allowed his daughter and minions to leave so they could perform their respective tasks; Kuro decided to start right away on figuring out how to locate Yoshi, Shen, and their children, so she told Bradford and Xever to do as they pleased in the meantime.

Once she was gone, Xever punched the wall and roared in frustration, "The Dragons were our best chance! And now, thanks to this, I looked like a fool in front of Master Shredder and I now have to take orders from a little girl!"

"Well, not much you can do about it now," said Bradford, who was leaning against the wall, "Master Shredder isn't the type to change his mind so easily. And ever since the little snow flake became his student, she's been his favorite; he even took to calling her his daughter and has shared secrets with her that he never even shared with _me_."

"This is not over," Xever growled, "I will track down whoever is responsible and make them pay for this!"

"I could lend a hand with that if you'd like," said Bradford.

Xever looked suspiciously at Bradford and asked, "Why would _you_ want to help _me_ with anything? We've never gotten along; in fact, last I remember, we hate each other."

"True," said Bradford, "But, let's not forget that you're not the only one was made a fool of. And it just so happens that it is possible for both of us to get our revenge."

"Oh really, Bradford?" Xever asked, "How?"

"Simple, we go to the antique store that the Purple Dragons robbed and attack the owner and any employees that work there," Bradford explained, "And then when the ninjas arrive to save the day, we will trap them and then destroy the building and everyone else inside."

"And then we bring the ninjas to Master Shredder to interrogate," Xever finished, "That's brilliant. And it will show Master Shredder that we are not as useless as he thought."

"It may even take Kuro down a few pegs," Bradford added, "That'll show that little snow princess who's the real top pupil around here."

"What is with and winter puns when it comes to you taunting that girl?" Xever asked, "Is that supposed to reference her coldness?"

Bradford simply laughed and said, "It's actually a reference to her real name."

"Her real name?" Xever asked.

"I'll explain later," said Bradford, "Right now, we have more pressing matters to attend to. And we have to act quickly, before Kuro finds out. If she finds out that we're about to do this, she might try to take control."

Xever nodded in agreement and the two left to exact their revenge. The two were aware that once this was over, one would definitely try to outdo the other, but, none of that mattered at the moment, because their real problems were the ninjas, Hamato Yoshi, and Kuro.

However, they failed to notice the ninja hiding in the shadows listening to their conversation; looks like Kuro would not be in the dark for much longer.

* * *

Meanwhile, the Hamato teens had decided to get out of the house for something besides ninja stuff and invited April to join them; they felt she could use a night out to get her mind off of the Kraang. They even had the perfect place in mind.

"So, you guys wanna let me in on where we're going?" April asked.

"It's our favorite noodle place; Murakami's," said Miwa, "We think you're gonna love it."

"Yeah," said Mikey, "The food there's awesome! It's real Japanese cooking!"

"And the owner, Mr. Murakami, is one of the nicest people you'll ever meet," Leo explained, "And his cooking style is just amazing."

"He's like a ninja, but for food!" Mikey added, "That's especially awesome considering he can't even see what he's doing."

"I'm sorry?" April said in confusion.

"Oh yeah, we probably should've opened with this," said Raph, "Murakami's blind."

"Really?" April asked, "That's so sad."

"We thought so too at first," said Miwa, "But he told us that it really wasn't that bad. He said that even though he was blinded when he young, he never had any problem seeing; his other senses are heightened to the point where he doesn't need his eyes. In a lot of ways, he actually sees a lot better than us."

"Cool," said April.

One more block and they finally arrived at the restaurant, a skinny red building with kanji on the sign, the group went inside and met with an old man with gray hair and darkened; April guessed that this must be Murakami.

"Hey, Murakami-san," Miwa said.

"Ah, Miwa-chan," Murakami greeted, "You brought your brothers as well, I can tell."

"How'd you know that we were all here, Mr. Murakami,?" Mikey asked, "We didn't even say 'hi' yet,"

"Raphael-san put on a lot of that body spray he uses again," said Murakami, "I could smell it from over here. And when Miwa-chan brings one of you, she usually brings all of you."

"Hey, I play on the school hockey team and don't always have time to take a shower before I leave the house," said Raph.

"Relax, Raphael-san," said Murakami, "The smell does not bother anyone, I was merely making an observation. I am happy that you and your family could make it. It is always nice to have you here."

"Oh," said Raph, "Well, it's nice to see you too, Murakami-san."

"Oh, almost forgot," said Leo, "We brought a friend with us to try the food."

Leo allowed April to pass by him, and she extended her hand to the owner and said, "Hi, I'm April O'Neil."

"Kounichiwa, April-chan," said Murakami, shaking April's hand, "Always nice to meet a friend of the Kurama children."

"Likewise," said April.

Murakami then released April's hand and asked, "How about I fix you all something to eat? Take your pick of anything on the menu; I will give you a discount."

April looked at the menu that Murakami gave her. It was hard to choose because everything looked delicious, but she finally made her decision. She looked up at Murakami and told him, "I'd like the Yakisoba, please."

"Excellent choice," said Murakami, taking the menu from April. He then turned to Miwa and the boys and asked them, "And you?"

The siblings all nodded at each other and Leo said, "We'll have our favorite, please."

"Of course, Leonardo-san," said Murakami, "Pizza Gyoza."

After Murakami walked away to prepare their dishes April looked curiously at the siblings and asked, "Pizza Gyoza?"

"It's Gyoza made with Pizza ingredients," Mikey explained.

"Okay," April said, "But what's a gyoza?"

"It's a Japanese style dumpling," said Miwa, "You can try one of ours if you'd like."

"And if you like 'em, you can order some to go," said Raph.

"No thanks," said April, not liking the idea of tasting a pizza flavored dumplings.

Murakami returned later with their orders; a bowl of noodles for April and trays of dumplings for the Hamato teens. As they all ate their food, April realized that her friends spoke the truth about how delicious the food is. She also wondered how they could eat pizza dumplings.

"You know, there are other things to eat here, right?" April said.

"We know," said Raph, "We've tried most of them. But these are our favorite."

"You don't say," said April, not really understanding the appeal of the dumplings. It was then that Miwa chose to tell everyone about her latest discovery.

"You guys aren't gonna believe what I found out today," said Miwa.

"What?" Leo asked, popping another gyoza into his mouth.

"Remember when Bradford and his pal, Xever, took Donnie and Mikey hostage?" Miwa asked.

"How could we forget?" Raph asked in tone that implied that he would rather forget, "Why are you bringing that up now?"

"Well, after the fight, I got this feeling that I had heard the name before," Miwa explained, "It was bugging me for a long time until today when I remembered this one time when we jumped the Purple Dragons in their old hideout. Fong was on the phone with a man that he called Xever."

This got everyone's attention. They all stopped eating abruptly and gave Miwa their full attention.

"Sis, are you saying that Xever is in league with the Purple Dragons?" Leo asked.

"Actually, I'm saying that Xever is in _charge_ of them," said Miwa, "I only heard one side of the conversation, but the way Fong was talking sounded like he was trying to make sure Xever was pleased."

"But that means that the Shredder controls them, too," Raph realized.

"But, I thought _Fong_ was the leader of the Purple Dragons," said Mikey.

"He is," Miwa explained, "But he answers to Xever, who in turn answers to the Shredder."

"It's like in the army," Leo explained, "Shredder is the commander, Xever is the platoon leader, Fong is the squad leader, and the Purple Dragons are the squad."

"Oh, I get it now," said Mikey.

"But if Xever controls the Purple Dragons, then he might not be very happy that they got arrested," Leo realized, "He's gonna want revenge."

"Yes," said Miwa, "And seeing as we're the ones who put the Purple Dragons in jail, we are most likely his prime targets."

"That means he's gonna be up to something big," said Leo, "We need to figure out his next move, before any innocent people get hurt."

During the conversation, April noticed that Donnie was unusually quiet and he had barely touched his gyoza; in fact, it looked like he was not even paying that much attention.

"Donnie, are you feeling alright?" April asked.

At the sound of his name being called, Donnie came back to reality and said, "Yes. I'm fine. Why do you ask?"

"Well, you've been awfully quiet since before we got, you don't seem to be paying much attention," said April, "And you've barely touched your food."

"Oh, sorry," said Donnie, breaking his chopsticks apart, "It's just that I can't stop thinking about today."

"You mean the doctor's appointment?" Mikey asked.

"Yeah," said Donnie as he popped a gyoza into his mouth. He chewed it and swallowed and then added, "Something's bothering me. The doctor said he couldn't find anything wrong with me and Raph said that it coincided with my employment with Dr. Rockwell."

"What about it?" Raph asked.

"Well, I can't help but wonder if maybe you were onto something," Donnie explained, "Maybe while I was working there I got exposed to some type experimental chemical or something."

"Or maybe _Rockwell_ experimented on _you_ in secret," Mikey said in a dramatic tone, "Maybe he wanted to create a psychic formula and needed a human test subject."

In response, Donnie slammed his hands on the counter, stood up abruptly, and snapped, "No! Dr. Rockwell would never do that!"

"Whoa, take it easy, Donnie," said Raph, "Granted I kinda like the angry look on you."

Miwa glared at Raph and said, "Don't encourage him."

April put her hand on Donnie's shoulder and said, "I'm sure Mikey wasn't being serious, Donnie."

Donnie took a deep breath and regained his composure before telling the others, "I'm sorry, guys. I'm sorry for yelling. It's just that Dr. Rockwell is a good man and can't imagine him doing something as horrible as using young kids as test subjects."

Leo then got up from his seat put his hand on his second youngest brother's shoulder and said, "We understand, Donnie. And I'm sure there's a logical explanation."

"Sure there is," said Raph, "We just have to wait for the test results."

"In the meantime, I believe you're scheduled to work tonight," said Miwa.

"Oh! Right! Almost forgot!" Donnie said, "Excuse me, Murakami-san, can I get the rest of my order to go?"

"Of course, Donatello-san," said Murakami, taking Donnie's plate to pack his gyoza into a to-go bag.

"I can with you if you'd like," said April, "Maybe I can see if this Rockwell guy nows anything about the Kraang or my dad."

"That might not be a bad idea," said Donnie, "You guys try to figure out Xever's next move."

"Okay," said Leo, "We'll call you if we find out anything."

Murakami came to Donnie and handed him a bag of gyoza. He smiled as he said, "I put extra in the bag for you to share with April-chan."

"Thanks, Murakami-san," said April, still unsure about the pizza dumplings.

After saying their goodbyes, Donnie and April left the restaurant together for Rockwell's lab.

* * *

Upon arrival, Donnie introduced April to Dr. Rockwell and showed her around the lab. After the tour, April decided ask Dr. Rockwell some questions and find if he knows anything about the Kraang, leaving Donnie to his job.

As Donnie was examining some DNA samples that Dr. Rockwell told him to look at, he almost did not hear the door open and someone's footsteps entering the room. Donnie looked up from where he was and saw Dr. Falco standing next to him.

Dr. Falco smiled at Donnie and said, "Hello, Donatello. How are you this evening?"

"Hi, Dr. Falco," said Donnie, "I'm doing okay, thanks for asking."

"Are you sure?" Falco asked, "I ran into that friend of yours on the way in; April, I think her name was. She told me you had to go to the doctor today."

"Oh, yeah," said Donnie, "I've been sick a lot lately."

"Oh, really?" Falco asked, "What kind of sick?"

"Well, I've been having headaches and I've been getting dizzy. And just recently, I got nauseous and dizzy and I threw up," Donnie explained, "But right now I feel okay enough to work."

"Well, if you're sure," said Falco. He then held out a to-go cup of hot chocolate and said, "Here. I got you this."

"Again? You didn't have to do that," said Donnie, taking the cup from the doctor.

"I know," said Falco, "I just wanted to do something nice for you."

"Thanks," sad Donnie, "I thinking I'll share this one with April; she loves chocolate."

"No!" Falco screamed, surprising Donnie. He then cleared his throat and regained his composure as he said, "That's yours. You should get another one later to give to April."

"I don't see why I can't just share mine with her," said Donnie.

Dr. Falco thought for a few seconds and then said, "Well, what if whatever you have is contagious? You wouldn't want her to start throwing too, would you?"

"I see your point, doctor," said Donnie, "Nothing's happened so far, but why take a chance? Right?"

"Right," said Dr. Falco.

In truth, Donnie was starting to find Dr. Falco's actions quite questionable; mostly because he knew for a fact that his type of condition could not be contagious; if it was, his family would already have it too. Donnie was just about to make up an excuse to get away from when he heard April calling him.

"Donnie," she said, poking her head into the room, "Can you come with me for a second? Dr. Rockwell says he's having trouble with his computer."

"Sure, April," said Donnie, standing up from his chair.

"Now hold on," said Dr. Falco, blocking Donnie, "Don't you have work to do."

"It can wait a little bit," said Donnie, pushing past the doctor, "April and Dr. Rockwell need help now."

Donnie started heading for the door to follow April when suddenly, he started getting another headache. He hissed in pain as he clutched his head. As he struggled to keep standing, April rushed to his side to help him and even though he did not see her lips moving, Donnie was sure he could hear her voice.

' _Oh no, of all the times for this to happen,_ ' he heard April say, ' _I have to get Donnie away from this man. He can't be trusted._ '

Donnie then heard another voice, Dr. Falco, saying, ' _This is perfect. With him in this state, I can take him with little to no resistance and then I can take him to someplace where I can monitor the progress more closely with no interuptions; and I didn't even need to drug him like I usually do. I need to grab him quickly. If that girl gets away with him, then I'll lose the psychic chemical! I refuse to lose my test subject when I've finally come this far!_ '

The next thing Donnie saw in his head was images. Dr. Falco and Dr. Rockwell receiving mutagen from the Kraang. Dr. Falco and Dr. Rockwell fighting about the psychic neuro chemical and testing it on humans. The day they met, Dr. Falco getting an idea. Dr. Falco was pouring something into the hot chocolate and later giving it to Donnie to drink. Donnie drinks the drink and then passes out and, while he is unconscious, Dr. Flaco sticks a syringe into his neck and injects the contents into Donnie. Donnie's eyes widened in shock as he took in all of the new information. He regained his balance and stood in front of April as he confronted Dr. Falco.

" _You_ did this to me?" Donnie asked, "I trusted you! And all this time you've just been using me as a Guinea pig for your experiment."

"What?" Dr. Falco asked, trying to sound innocent, "Why, Donatello, what would make you think such a thing?"

"Save it, Dr. Falco," said Donnie, "I know everything. I know you got the mutagen from that man and were paid to modify it. I know that you've been drugging my hot chocolate and then injecting me with that psychic neuro chemical you've been working on while I was unconscious. I even know that you did all of that without Dr. Rockwell knowing."

Dr. Falco's eyes widened in shock at what Donnie had just said to him. "How did you know what I was doing with the serum? How did you even know that it _existed_?" Dr. Falco asked.

"I could see into your mind," Donnie explained, "I saw everything you remembered and heard everything you were thinking."

Dr. Falco was shocked at first, but then his face turned to an evil grin and he started chuckling darkly. The mere sound was starting to creep both Donnie and April out.

"It's finally ready!" he declared, "I told Tyler that experimenting on ape DNA samples alone would only take it so far, and I was right! It appears I was also right in testing it on _you_."

"What are you talking about?" April asked, "What's going on? What have you been doing to Donnie?"

"I'm glad you asked, young lady," said Dr. Falco, "You see, my good friend, Tyler, and myself were paid by a man calling himself Kraang to modify a substance called mutagen. We were working on creating a neuro chemical to give humans psychic powers. Unfortunately, Tyler was unwilling to test it on living subjects; he only wanted to experiment on samples of monkey and ape DNA.

I thought we would never get anywhere with Tyler's method, but then, one day, young Donatello came in to start his first day as Tyler's lab assistant. I knew that a young healthy person like him would be the perfect specimen. Tyler forbade me from inviting him to help with the project, naturally, but that did not stop me from testing it on him anyway."

"You monster!" April snapped, "Testing on a kid?! It's because of you that Donnie keeps getting sick! What kind of sick person are you?!"

"I'm a scientist," Dr. Falco simply said, not an ounce of guilt in his voice, "And now, I would like my final result, if you please. Just a little blood should do that trick."

"Stay away from me!" said Donnie, backing away and taking a fighting stance, "I'm not letting you stick anymore needles into me ever again!"

April reached behind her for the door knob and turned it so that she and Donnie could escape. Unfortunately, Dr. Falco was not about to let his experiment get away so easily.

"I was hoping that you would make this easier and just _give_ me what I asked for," said Dr. Falco, as he made his way closer to the teens, "But now, you've both forced me to take extreme measures."

April opened the door as quickly as she could and shouted, "Run, Donnie! Run!"

Both of them turned and dashed for the door, unfortunately, Dr. Falco quickly grabbed Donnie's arm and pulled him back. April stopped when she realized Donnie was not behind her and turned around to see him resisting as Dr. Falco pulled him back and tried to force him to go with him. She gasped and ran back for him. Dr. Rockwell heard the noise and looked to see what was going on; his eyes widened in fear when he saw what was going on and rushed to help.

"Get your hands off me!" Donnie snapped, "I already told you I'm not giving you my blood!"

"I will have my serum even if I have to use force!" Dr. Falco yelled, he then started pulling Donnie's arm as he said, " _You_ are coming with _me_!"

"No I'm not!" Donnie shouted. And then he grabbed Dr. Falco's forearm and flipped him over his head right into the wall. The impact was so great that it seemed to knock him unconscious.

As Donnie was catching his breath, he looked to the doorway and saw both April and Dr. Rockwell standing there and staring in shock. Seeing the both of them made him nervous. He knew that April would understand his actions since she was there when Dr. Falco revealed his true colors, but he had no way of knowing how Dr. Rockwell would react. He had not seen what happened earlier.

"Doctor, I can explain," said Donnie, "You might not believe me, but Dr. Falco-"

"Has been experimenting on you behind my back," said Dr. Rockwell.

April looked at Dr. Rockwell in surprise and asked, "You knew?"

"Not for sure until that monster attack," said Dr. Rockwell, "However, I did have some suspicions that my colleague was up to no good. It was during the monster attack that I realized exactly what he was up to. I'm so sorry, I never thought that Victor would go this far."

"It's okay, doctor," said Donnie, "All that matters is that everyone's okay."

"Yeah, and now, I think we better get out of here before Dr. Sleeping Beauty wakes up," said April, "I don't want Donnie around him when that happens."

"Nor I," said Dr. Rockwell, "But more for Victor's sake than Donatello's from what I saw before."

Donnie laughed and said, "Good point. And you may want to think about calling the police."

"Agreed," said Dr. Rockwell, "Let's get him into the closet."

They turned to do just that but found Dr. Falco missing. They looked and saw and open window. April went over to the window and looked outside to see where he might've gone. Unfortunately, she saw nothing, not even any sign of a car.

"He got away," said April, "He must've fled while we weren't looking."

"We better get home and tell the others what happened," said Donnie, "And see if we can get those ninjas to track Dr. Falco down."

"Not a bad idea," said Dr. Rockwell, "But before you go, I have something that I want you to give to them."

April and Donnie waited as Dr. Rockwell left the room and came back with a canister full of mutagen. He hand said Canister to Donnie and explained to him that it was safer with the ninjas than him. Donnie agreed with him and took the canister and left the lab with April. Their hope was that that was the last they would ever see of Dr. Victor Falco. However, April and Donnie were both a getting the feeling that they would see him again in the near future.

* * *

After leaving the lab, Donnie and April made a bee line for the antique shop. When they arrived, they both told Yoshi and Shen what happened. This was quite a shock to the both of them; Dr. Falco helped save their son's life during the Carnotaur attack after all, and it turns out that all he was trying to save was his formula. Donnie then asked about his siblings' whereabouts and Yoshi told him that they went to Chinatown to try to track down Xever and fins out his next move. With the new information, Donnie left the mutagen with his parents and April and rushed to go gear up and join his siblings, knowing that they would need his help. He also called them to get their coordinates.

* * *

Leo Miwa, Raph, and Mikey stood a rooftop and watched Xever like a hawk. He seemed to be waiting for someone or something, but who or what? They did not know. Suddenly, Miwa heard someone behind her and immediately whipped out her tanto and jumped the person who dared to sneak up on her. She held the tanto to the stalker's throat only to realize that she had just tackled... Donnie.

"Please don't slit my throat!" Donnie choked out.

"Donnie?" Miwa asked, and then put her blade away and got off of him. She held her hand out to her brother and said, "Don't sneak up on me like that."

"Sorry," said Donnie accepting her hand and standing back up again, "If I didn't, I might've blown your cover. So, what's going on?"

"Xever's waiting for someone or something, but we don't know who or what," said Leo, "But we have to stay silent if we wanna find out anything."

Raph rolled his eyes and asked, "Leo, do you really need to say that every time?"

"It tends to become necessary," says Leo.

Before anymore could be said, a van pulled up and Bradford stepped out in his red ninja garb. Xever walked over to him and the ninjas listened as they talked.

"I got the weapons you told me," said Bradford, "Are you sure these things will be the ideal equipment?"

"Of course," said Xever, opening the back of the van, "I've used them myself on many occasions. Trust me; they are the perfect weapons for this task."

"I'm just saying this seems like over kill," said Bradford, "And not very ninja-like."

As Bradford said his piece, Xever reached inside the van and pulled out what looked to be a giant flame thrower. He grinned evilly as he admired the weapon he was holding.

"You forget, Bradford, _I_ am not a ninja," said Xever.

As Xever put the weapon back inside the van and closed it, the Hamato ninjas were curious about what he planned to do with it and whatever else was in there.

"Once their inside the van, I'm gonna hitch a ride and see where they go," Leo whispered, "I'll call you guys when I know."

Before Leo could do anything, Donnie focused on Xever and started getting a strange sensation in his head and heard Xever's voice.

' _With these, I will have my revenge,_ ' said Xever, ' _Once we get that antique shop, we'll capture those ninjas for the Shredder and then the shop and its owner will feel the full power as their shop turns to ashes and them themselves with it._ '

Donnie gasped and told his oldest brother, "You don't have to tail them! They're going to our house!"

"What?" Leo asked.

"I read his mind!" said Donnie, "They're going to attack the shop and then capture us when we go to save it! And then, after they have us, he's going to use those big flamethrowers to burn the place down!"

"Are you serious?!" Miwa asked in shock.

"But, I thought Shredder was in love with mother," said Mikey, "Why would they want to kill the woman Shredder loves?"

"They don't know that the shop is hers and fathers," said Donnie, "But if they find them both there, then they try to take them both to the Shredder; if there's one thing I understand from the stories, Shredder will want to deal with father himself."

"And if he finds out that mother and father are there, it won't take him long to realize who _we_ really are," Raph realized.

"We can't let that happen!" Leo declared, "Come on guys! We have to keep them from getting to the shop!"

Not needing to be told twice, the ninja teens leaped into action. Just as Bradford was starting the engine, Raph jumped on to the hood, startling the two. He then punched their wind shield, with his hands covered of course, and grabbed them by their shirts. He then pulled them out of the van and then threw them onto the ground. Bradford and Xever sat up and found themselves surrounded by the entire ninja team.

As the ninja teens glared at their enemies, they both smirked and Bradford and said, "Well, this is unexpected; in a good way."

"Oh yeah?" Miwa asked, "Why's that?"

"We were going to draw you out, but here you are," Bradford explained, "All five of you in fact."

"Sorry to disappoint you, but you're not destroying anything or killing anyone tonight," said Leo.

Bradford's eyes widened in shock as he asked, "What? How did you know about that?"

"Oh, we have our ways," said Raph, secretly referring to Donnie, "Not that we're gonna tell _you_ what they are."

"It doesn't matter _how_ they know!" said Xever, "Let's grab these brats and take them to Master Shredder!"

Raph only laughed at Xever and said, "You're free to try."

"Catch us if you can!" said Mikey.

Right after Mikey said that, Bradford and Xever charged to attack; Bradford went for Mikey and Leo, while Xever went for Raph, Miwa, and Donnie. During the battle, Donnie started to get a headache and saw images in his head. Once he realized what was going on with his head, Donnie focused and saw images of how Bradford and Xever planned to attack them.

He managed to place himself near Miwa long enough to tell her, "Better cover Naoto; Bradford's planning to take him hostage and force us to surrender."

Miwa turned to Donnie and asked, "You sure?"

"Yup," said Donnie, "And Xever got the idea to focus on Kurogane. He seems to think that if he keeps Kurogane busy, then Bradford can find a way to capture the rest of us."

"But, you still haven't told any of us _how_ you know?" Miwa asked.

"I Don't have time to explain right now," said Donnie, "Just go help Naoto and Ryu; I've got Kurogane's back."

Miwa was about to protest, but Donnie charged ahead and started swinging his staff at Xever. Raph joined in and used his brute force against Xever. Miwa still wanted to help the two, however, she knew that Donnie was right that Mikey might need to be covered since Bradford was stronger and possibly faster than him and Leo. So, she rushed over to her other two brothers.

Just as Donnie had told her, Bradford was preparing to make a grab for Mikey. Thinking quickly, Miwa whipped out her tessen and threw it at Bradford, hitting him in the arm. As he was crying out in agony, Miwa charged at him and kicked him away from Mikey.

Mikey and Leo saw that and Mikey smiled at Miwa and said, "Thanks, Karai."

"Anytime," said Miwa, with a smile, "But you should really be thanking Tetsuo; he's the one who gave me the heads up that you were Bradford's primary target."

Mikey and Leo raised an eyebrow at that and Bradford heard her and asked, "What?! How did _he_ know? Is he the one who figured out our other plan, too?"

"I'm not answering that," said Miwa, "Besides, the knowledge isn't going to save you from getting your butt kicked."

With that said, Miwa, Leo, and Mikey got out their weapons and charged at Bradford. Bradford blocked and dodged their attacks as best he could, but it was difficult. Meanwhile, Xever was occupied with his two opponents. Xever smirked as Raph blocked a punch to his face and prepared to sneak a kick. It might have worked if Raph was alone, which he was not, Donnie saw that and struck Xever first. Seeing now way to take one down while the other was there to help, Xever decided that his best move was to split them up.

As they prepared for the next attack, Donnie got headache for a split second and saw into Xever's mind again. He saw Xever rushing at them and then knocking Donnie out so he could fight Raph alone.

' _Nice try,_ ' said Donnie.

Xever got ready to deliver a kick to Donnie's head to knock him out. Fortunately, Donnie blocked the kicked and delivered his own to Xever's stomach, sending him flying into a pile of garbage cans. The impact so strong that Xever lost consciousness right there. Raph lat out a laugh when he saw that and rushed over to the van.

While the others kept Bradford busy, Raph broke into the van and used his sai to destroy the weapons that Xever had brought so that they could not be used again. By the time he was finished, his siblings had Bradford outnumbered.

"I'd surrender if I were you," said Leo, "We have numbers on our side."

"And _you_ have nothing," said Miwa, grinning under his mask.

Bradford only glared at them as he maneuvered his way to the van hoping to make his escape. He then noticed Raph climb out and that he was not looking in his direction. He figured that this could be the perfect chance to capture at least one of the ninjas, so he swiftly moved to grab the purple clad ninja. He made a move to grab Raph, only for said ninja to punch him in the stomach before rejoining his siblings.

"That was dirty!" Bradford declared.

"You're one to talk," said Raph, "Oh, by the way, were those weapons covered by a warranty?"

"No," Xever said they were custom made. Why would they be covered by warranty? We would we need to-" Bradford asked, and stopped when he realized what Raph was implying. He opened the van doors and found the weapons completely destroyed.

Bradford was so enraged by this he turned to attack the ninja teens. However, that proved to be a mistake as he found himself surrounded and beaten to the ground. Leo then grabbed him by his collar and brought him up to his face, glaring daggers at him.

"Let's get one thing straight," said Leo, "Second time around is off limits. Got it?"

Seeing that the boy was serious, Bradford nodded his head and said, "Yes."

"Good," said Leo, "Now grab your friend and get out of here."

With that, Bradford got up off the ground and ran to Xever. He picked up the fallen man and tossed him over his shoulder. Just before he left, Bradford turned to the ninjas and said, "This isn't over." With that, Bradford took off into the night carrying Xever on his shoulder.

After he was gone, Mikey smiled and said, "Well, guess that takes care of them."

"Sure does," said Miwa, and then she shot Raph a confused look and asked, "Warranty?"

Raph simply shrugged and said, "It was my way of hinting at the fact that he no longer had his weapons. I thought it might sound better to say it like that than to just tell him flat out or show him."

Leo decided to ignore Raph and Miwa and chose to get some answers from Donnie. He turned his attention to his genius brother and asked him, "Donnie, what did you mean when you said you read Xever's mind before?"

"I meant exactly that," Donnie answered, "When I looked at Xever before the fight, I could see and hear his thoughts. All because of Dr. Falco's serum."

"What are you talking about?" Miwa asked.

"I think it would be best to talk about this at home," said Donnie.

* * *

After the teens returned home, Donnie told them everything that happened with Dr. Falco and about his powers. By the time he was finished, his siblings all had mixed reactions. Leo's jaw dropped, Mikey's eyes went wide and he shrieked, Miwa was speechless, and Raph was barely keeping his anger under control.

"That son of a-!" Raph snapped, "Using our brother as a human Guinea pig! Next time I see him, he's dead!"

"Leave some for me!" Miwa added.

Leo turned his attention to Donnie and asked him, "Do you think there's a way to cure this?"

Donnie shook his head and said, "I wouldn't know where to begin."

"Why would you _want_ to?" Mikey asked. His family looked at him as though he had just grown an extra head and he added, "I'm just saying it was a big help tonight; he should learn to control it and use it. Right?"

"Use it?" Miwa asked, "Are you serious? This made Donnie sick!"

"I'm not so sure," said Donnie, "It's possible that my getting sick was my body trying to reject the serum. I felt better during the fight when I stopped fighting the serum."

"Exactly," said Mikey, "A regular ninja is tough, but a _psychic_ ninja could really add something extra to the team."

Yoshi contemplated his youngest son's idea and then said, "You make a very good point, Michelangelo." Mikey's older siblings all looked at their father in confusion and Yoshi himself merely said, "Donatello's new ability can be a valuable asset to your future missions, it must be honed. I trust you will figure out the proper method."

Leo looked back at his siblings and said, "Father's right. Donnie, get some rest because tomorrow, you've got some new training to do."

"Cool," said Donnie.

"There is one more thing that bugs me, though," said Miwa, "How did April know not trust Falco alone with Donnie?"

"Your father and I asked her about that," Shen explained, "She told us that she sometimes gets feelings about people and things."

"A feeling?" Raph asked skeptically, "That's it?"

"Don't you see, Raphael?" Yoshi asked, "Your friend has a rare gift; a sensitivity I have trained my entire life to perfect."

"Don't worry, father," said Mikey, "You'll get it."

"I did," said Yoshi, "It just took me a while."

"That's nothing to be ashamed of," said Mikey, still not getting what his father was saying.

"I never said I _was_ ," said Yoshi, nearly losing his patience. He breathed to calm himself and then said, "What I meant was that I offered April a chance to train under me to be a kunouichi like your sister, and she accepted."

The teens took a moment to take in the new information and then Donnie cheered, "This is great! We can train together!"

"Awesome!" Miwa cheered, "I'm not the only girl student anymore!"

Leo quieted his siblings and asked his father, "You explained the risks, right?"

"Of course," said Yoshi, "Did you think I was insane or something?"

"No," said Leo, "I just meant that ninjutsu isn't for the faint of heart. I could drain someone physically, mentally, and spiritually."

"I am aware of that and told April," said Yoshi. And then he shrugged and added, "She simply said that it could not be worse than high school."

Raph laughed and said, "Boy is she in for a surprise."

* * *

Meanwhile, in the Foot Clan lair, Kuro was at her computer doing some research on possible places to find Hamato Yoshi while waiting on her informant. She had just finished adding a place to list of places to search when she heard a knock on her door.

"Cast in the name of God," she called.

" _Ye not guilty,_ " a female voice replied.

"State your name and purpose," said Kuro.

" _Scarlet,_ " the same female voice called back, " _I have a possible clue to location of our target: Hamato Yoshi._ "

"Come in," Kuro said.

The door opened to reveal a woman with hair tied up in a high ponytail dressed all in black ninja gear, complete with twin blades attached to her belt and a black mask over her eyes. If one were to look closely at her, they would see that she is the woman from the doctor's office. She walked inside, closing the door behind her and walked over to Kuro.

"Must you do that every time?" Scarlet asked, "Only those who work for you or your father come here."

"I couldn't risk it being someone under the control of Bradford or Xever," said Kuro, "I was informed by Coral earlier that Bradford and Xever are seeking to remove me as an obstacle. If I'm not careful, they could decide to get drastic and try to stage an accident. You know how they feel about me; especially after today."

"Good point," Scarlet said, "Anyway, I was at the doctor's office to getting a physical today, figuring that it might be the best place to look for info on Hamato."

"Hmm, interesting," said Kuro, "Did you find out anything useful?"

"Well, at first I had a few doubts, but then I saw someone in the waiting room that looked familiar," Scarlet explained, and then she showed Kuro a picture on her phone and asked, "Presto."

Kuro looked at the picture and was surprised to see it was a man who looked very much like the man they were searching for, only dressed up in clothes she would have never pictured him wearing.

"Hamato Yoshi?" she asked, curiously. She laughed a little and said, "Okay, I have to admit that is quit the disguise."

"I thought so too," said Scarlet, she pulled her phone back and scrolled to another picture as she said, "He was there with his sons. The doctor called the name of the one that was his patient. The boy's name is Donatello Kurama."

She held up a picture she had taken of Donnie, clearly without his knowledge. Looking at it, Kuro could clearly see the resemblance between him and his father. Scarlet than took the phone back and scrolled to another one.

"The other son, on the other hand did not look that much like him, if at all," Scarlet explained, "I heard Yoshi call him Raphael."

Kuro examined the picture and was surprised by Raph's appearance. Raph looked remarkably like the older pictures she had seen of her father. He was also about the age that his son, Sousuke, would be now. But this could not possibly be him, he died when he was small; right?

Kuro pushed that thought aside for the time being and asked, Scarlet, "And you're positive that this man is Hamato Yoshi?"

"I have to admit, I had my doubts," Scarlet said, "But the resemblance is uncanny. We can't just ignore that. I think we should look into it before making any decisions."

Kuro nodded and said, "Yes. We should investigate his sons as well. And let's keep this information on a need to know basis until we confirm our suspicions."

"Of course," said Scarlet.

"I do have one question, though," said Kuro, "Is there a reason that this took until now to get here?"

"There is," said Scarlet. She then got over dramatic as she explained, "I had to head to the gym after my physical because when I was weighed, the scale read five pounds overweight!"

Kuro shot Scarlet an annoyed look and asked, "Are you serious?"

Scarlet got over dramatic again as she said, "I _am_ model in civilian mode, you know. I can't have my weight getting out of hand."

"I see," said Kuro, whilst secretly wondering if her father might've been right about letting Americans into the Foot Clan, "Well, take care of yourself and I'll get some others to investigate these Kurama's as well; the more people we have on this the better our chances will be of getting results."

"Good idea," said Scarlet, taking her leave.

"Have a good night then, Amelia," said Kuro, using her underlings' real name.

"You too, Yukiko," said Scarlet/Amelia. And with that, she left the room, leaving Kuro alone with her thoughts.

As she sat at her computer, Kuro kept on thinking about the picture she was shown of Raph and how much he resembled the Shredder.

' _I can't believe how much he looks like father,_ ' she thought, ' _Almost like they are father and son. No. That's impossible. Father only had one son, Sousuke, and father said he died sixteen years ago._ '

She then remembered the photo she had seen of Sousuke. She could not deny that if that baby had grown up, he would be about her age and Raph had many of Sousuke's features, except for the lightning bolt birthmark. And then it hit her. The place where the birthmark would be was covered by Raph's shirt, so she had no way of knowing if he had it or not.

' _That's it! The birthmark!_ ' she thought, ' _That's how I can know for sure! If he is Sousuke, then he will have the same mark in the same spot. If he's not Sousuke, then he will not have it there. But if he truly is Sousuke, then he is the rightful heir to the Foot Clan._

This was quite the dilemma for Kuro. If Raph is the Shredder's son and she reveals him, he will have his original heir back. Then what will that mean for her. Part of her would love to see her father happy to have his son back in his life, but another part was scared that he might forget about her. What would she do? What _could_ she do?

* * *

 **Author's Note:** Well, what did you folks think? It took me a while to get it right, I hope it turned out well enough. In case anyone is wondering, Kuro's passcode is taken from the anime series "Big O". Please leave your honest opinions in the comment section. No flames, please.


	14. How Far is Too Far?

**How Far is Too Far**

It was an early morning, a cheerful and excited atmosphere could be felt through the air as April made her way through the streets of New York to the antique shop; she just could not wait to begin her lesson and become a kunoichi. April was confident that she was going to be great and advance to full ninja in no time. Once she arrived, April went straight for the living space on the upper floor. She found herself greeted at the door by Shen.

"Good morning, April," said Shen, "I take it you are here to see my husband."

"Good morning, Shen," said April, eagerness visible in her voice, "And yes, I am here to see him. It's our first day of training, you know."

Shen laughed a little at her and said, "Eager are we?"

"Yeah!" April declared, "Just you wait and see! Once I become a kunoichi, those Kraang won't know what hit them!"

"Take it easy," said Shen, "Don't get over excited. It takes a lot of work to become a ninja. Miwa and the boys did not become ninjas over night."

"I'm aware of that," said April, "But I'm confident that I'll become a ninja in no time."

"I'm sure you will go far," said Shen, who doubted that she knew what she was getting into, "Well, I should get Yoshi so you can head down to the lair."

Shen then went back inside and let Yoshi know that April was there to start her training. Yoshi went to the door to find her waiting for him.

"Good morning, April," said Yoshi, "Shen has informed me that you're ready to start your training."

"You bet, Master," said April, pumping her fist, "Let's get a move on! This Kraang are going down! They'll think twice about messing with April O'Neil!"

"Easy, April," said Yoshi, leading April down to the manhole cover, "The dojo will still be there when we get there. Oh, I feel I should let you know, Leonardo is down there as well trying out some new psychic training tactics he found on the internet with Donatello.

* * *

After arriving at the lair, April and Yoshi found Leo and Donnie sitting at the coffee table facing each other. There was a stack of cards on the table in front of Leo along with a package of chocolate chip cookies. Donnie noticed Yoshi just as he was entertaining the lair and smiled.

"Hi, father," said Donnie, he then noticed his crush and blushed, "An-and April. Hi, April. Hey, April."

"Hi, Donnie," said April, smiling at Donnie, "So, what're you two up to?"

"This is a test for Donnie's psychic powers," Leo explained, "I'm going to hold up the cards so the backs are facing Donnie while he guesses what pictures are on them."

"Oh," said April, "You think his powers work that way? We've mostly just seen him read minds."

"We won't know until we try," said Leo, "Donnie has a theory that psychic powers aren't limited to just one ability."

"In other words, if a person has one kind of psychic power, then that person is bound to have others as well," Donnie explained, "And since I'm the only one with psychic powers here that we know of, I'm going to test that theory using my own abilities."

"Cool," said April, "But what are the cookies for?"

"Just to snack on," said Leo, "We don't know how long we'll be doing this."

"Oh," said April, "Well, I should be heading to the dojo to start my training."

"Good luck, April," Donnie called as April walked away from them towards the dojo. She stopped for a moment to smile at Donnie before heading in after her Master.

Once inside the dojo Yoshi handed April a white training gi, complete with a white belt, and had her go into the next room to change before starting their lesson. The red haired girl did as she was told and went into the room and changed out of her regular clothes and into the gi that was given to her. After tying the belt, April smiled in determination as she imagined herself going from White belt to full ninja.

With that thought in mind, April stepped out and said in a determined voice, "I'm ready, Master."

Yoshi nodded and said, "Good. Let us begin."

He led April over to a dummy hanging from the ceiling. She looked at it curiously at first and then asked her sensei, "What am I supposed to do with this thing?"

"Punch it," said Yoshi.

"Seriously?" April asked, "I thought we were going to train."

"This is it," said Yoshi, "Now, punch the dummy as hard as you can."

"Okay," said April, shrugging her shoulders.

April walked over to the dummy, pulled her arm back, and punched it really hard. She smiled proudly at her sensei expecting him to praise her. However, what she did not expect was to hear him say, "Again." So she punched the dummy a second time. He again told her to punch the dummy. This continued for quite a bit.

* * *

Meanwhile, Leo and Donnie were starting the card test.

"Okay, Donnie, look at the card and tell me what you see," said Leo, holding up a card.

Donnie closed his eyes and focused on the card for a bit. What both he and Leo failed to notice was that Mikey had come in with pizza and saw them. Mikey walked over and stood behind Leo to look at the card.

"That looks like a moose," said Mikey, causing both his brothers to groan in annoyance, confusing Mikey, "What?"

"Mikey! You spoiled the test!" said Leo as he put the card down.

"Test?" Mikey asked, tilting his head.

"Yes," said Leo, "For Donnie's psychic powers."

"Leo looked up a bunch of psychic tests online and this is one of the ones that came up," Donnie explained, "The idea is for me to identify the cards without actually seeing them."

"Oh," said Mikey, sounding like he understood, "That makes sense. Okay, I'll just stay quiet. Just pretend I'm not here."

"Okay," said Leo, "Just try not to spoil the test again. Donnie has to do it himself."

"You got it, bro," said Mikey, plopping down on the floor and munching on a slice of pizza.

Leo held up another card to Donnie and said, "Okay, try this one."

Donnie closed his eyes and focused on the card. After a nearly a minute, Donnie finally said, "I'm gonna say... a cat."

"That's right," said Leo, putting down the card. He then held up another card and said, "Try this one."

Donnie focused on the next card and then said, "It's... a fish."

"Right," said Leo, putting the card down. He picked up another card and said, "How about this one?"

Donnie focused on the card and said, "Is it... a flower?"

Leo smiled and said, "Right again."

"Dang, D, you're good at this," said Mikey, "Are you sure you can't see the cards?"

"I'm sure," said Donnie with a nod.

"Okay. Let's take a break," said Leo, "How about we check on April's progress?"

"Great idea!" Donnie shouted, excitement clear in his voice. He then cleared his throat and said, "I'd like to see how she's coming along."

The three then made their way to the dojo where their father was training their friend. When they reached the dojo, the brothers saw April, dressed in her training gi, and punching the training dummy.

"She looks beautiful," said Donnie, staring dreamily at his crush.

"Maybe so," said Leo, also watching April train, "But she's putting too much energy into each punch. You can tell by the way she's punching at high speed and strength."

"Come on, Leo, don't say that. She's doing great," said Donnie, as he watched April a little more, "I mean, she's only a beginner."

April, unaware that the three brothers were watching her, stopped punching and started panting heavily. She then turned to her sensei and asked, "How was that?"

"That was good, April," said Yoshi, "However, you still need work. Take a rest and we'll pick up again later."

"Seriously?" April asked, "You just said-"

"He said good not great," said Leo, "You were using too much energy."

At the sound of Leo's voice, April quickly turned her head and saw him, Donnie, and Mikey watching from the entrance. Seeing them made her blush in embarrassment.

"How long have you been there?" April asked.

"Long enough," said Leo.

"Yeah, long enough to watch you try and fail to kill the training dummy!" Mikey added and then laughed his butt off.

April glared at Mikey and got ready to go over and beat him up. However, it turned out that Leo was right about her using too much energy because the next thing she knew, she was losing her balance. She tried to regain her proper footing and stand, only to end up falling; luckily, Donnie rushed to catch her before she hit the floor. April looked up and was greeted by Donnie's smiling face.

She smiled back at him and said, "Thanks, Donnie."

Donnie let out a chuckle and said, "It was nothing."

The two then heard the sound of a digital camera click and looked over to see Mikey holding his phone and smiling.

"Raph's gonna love this," Mikey said.

He turned his phone around and showed them a picture he took of Donnie holding April in his arms as they looked at each other's faces. They quickly broke apart from each other and looked away from each other; Donnie rubbing the back of his neck with his right hand and April rubbing her right arm.

"So, how are you coming on your training?" April asked, breaking the silence, "You know, the psychic powers."

"Oh, good," said Donnie, "So far I've been getting all the cards right."

"Sounds like you're making more progress than me," said April, disappointment in her voice.

Donnie put a hand on her shoulder and said, "April, don't be so hard on yourself. You'll get it."

"Yeah, sure," said April, sounding unconvinced.

"You will, believe me," said Donnie, "None of us were perfect when we started."

"I've punching that dummy I don't know how many times and I still don't understand what I'm doing wrong," said April.

"The thing you are doing wrong, April, is that you are putting too much speed and strength into every one punch," Yoshi explained, "You do indeed have a lot of energy, almost like a bullet. However, you must learn to control and reserve that energy, or else you will not be able to use it correctly in battle."

"Sensei, I'm fine," said April, "I don't need to hold back. I need to challenge myself. How else can I become strong enough to fight the Kraang?"

As April punching the training dummy again, Yoshi the brothers looked concerned for April; Donnie most of all. He started to become worried for the girl he had a crush on; worried that she might take it too far and cease to be her true self; it was starting to feel like Miwa all over again, or worse... The Shredder.

* * *

The next day, at school, April decided to use her lunch period to practice in the gym. She started punching the punching bag and then went straight to running laps. Next, she started doing push-ups. Half way through her exercise, April saw Miwa standing in the doorway looking concerned.

"Hey, Miwa," said April, "What're you doing here?"

"Donnie told me about your training yesterday," Miwa explained as she approached April, "He said you were being too hard on yourself."

Miwa held her hand out to help April up. April took her hand and said as she stood back up, "I'm fine. Donnie's making a big deal over nothing."

"Really?" Miwa asked, doubting April's words, "You sure there isn't something you wanna tell me? Like maybe the reason you are trying to push yourself."

"If that's all, I'd be happy to tell you," said April, "I wanna get stronger so I can fight the Kraang."

"I see," said Miwa, "Just try not to lose sight of what really matters, otherwise you'll become obsessed. That's what happened to the Shredder."

"Would you relax?" April said, "I'm not going to be like him. Shredder's evil."

"True," said Miwa, "But sometimes people can start out with good intentions, and end up taking it too far."

With that, Miwa left the gym. April stayed where she was and thought about what Miwa said. Was she saying that she could end up turning into one of those bad guys in the movies? No. That will never happen! She is nothing like a movie villain! She will become stronger and save her father no matter what it takes! How could wanting that become a bad thing?

* * *

Over the next few days, Yoshi continued to teach April ninjutsu. However, he would not teach her moves like the ones she had seen the siblings use, he merely kept her at the basic training which involved punching the dummy, running laps, and balancing on a balance beam; this irritated her because she felt that she was ready to start learning actual fighting tactics.

Finally, during after falling off the balance beam for the ninth time, April snapped.

"This is so stupid!" April shouted, "I've been doing this stuff for days! When are you gonna teach me some real ninjutsu?"

"When you are ready," Yoshi simply answered.

"I'm ready now," said April.

"No, April," said Yoshi, "You are impatient. I have no doubt that you possess the strength to fight, but you lack discipline."

"Discipline?" April asked, "You expect me to fight against the Kraang using discipline?"

"Discipline is an important and necessary trate for any ninja," said Yoshi, "It prevents you from getting out of control."

"Are you serious?" April asked, "You want me to hold back when I'm fighting? How am I supposed to destroy the Kraang with kid gloves? They have to pay. They all have to pay!"

"Being a ninja of the Hamato clan is not about destruction or vengeance!" Yoshi shouted. Yoshi then took a deep breath and calmed himself down. After calming down, Yoshi told April, "I offered to make you my student because you have a rare gift that I wanted to teach you to use wisely. However, if revenge is all you are looking for, you are in the wrong place."

"What are you saying?" April asked.

"April, for generations, the Hamato clan have been honorable warriors who kept the peace and maintained balance. Our art must never be used for evil," Yoshi explained, "You seem to want to use it for your own revenge... Just as Oroku Saki did."

"I'm nothing like him!" April declared, "The Shredder is evil! Just like the Kraang!"

"April, the line between good and evil can often be blurred and hard to see," said Yoshi, "Many people start things with the best of intentions, only to end up corrupted. They lose sight of who they really are and what is most important to them. Oroku Saki is one of those people. I do not want that for you."

"That won't happen," said April, "Shredder and I are nothing alike. I'm good and he's evil, I'm fighting to save my father and protect this city and he just wants to hurt innocent people."

Seeing that April still did not understand what he was trying to tell her, Yoshi sighed and told her, "April I would like you to take some time to think about what you really want out of this training. Whether or not you continue training as my student will depend on what you truly want out of it."

With that, Yoshi left the dojo. April just stood where she was for a minute, thinking about what Yoshi had said. She was about to get expelled from the dojo almost as quickly as she started unless she told him what she wanted out of the training. But what was she supposed to say?

* * *

That night, after leaving the lair, April started to head back to her aunt's place. As she was leaving, April kept on thinking about what Yoshi had said. What was it she was supposed to say to her master? Obviously she wanted to stop the Kraang and save her father. But it seemed as though Yoshi believed she was after something else. But what?

"What could Master Yoshi possibly think I could want out of this training?" April asked out loud.

"Revenge," a familiar voice said.

April swiftly turned around and saw Miwa and her brothers; all dressed in their ninja clothes. Miwa was the one who answered her.

"What are you guys doing out here?" April asked.

"First of all, we live here," said Raph, pointing behind him at the antique store, "Second, we were just about to go out on patrol like we always do."

"Oh," said April, "Well, second question: what did Miwa mean by revenge?"

"I mean, April, that father is worried you might be really out for revenge," said Miwa, "And, frankly, I don't blame him. You seem pretty determined to destroy the Kraang."

"Sis has a point," said Leo, "You seem to care more about that than anything else."

"Okay, maybe I do want revenge. So what?" said April, "If you guys were in my position, I bet you would feel the same."

"You think _we_ aren't angry about something?" Mikey asked, "Shredder killed our grandfather when Miwa, Leo, and Raph were babies, a whole year before Donnie and I were born. We never got to know him or any other relatives because of him."

"The guy also forced us into hiding," said Raph, "We have to live in fear because of him."

"Then you should understand how I feel," said April, "Haven't any of you wanted revenge after all these years?"

"For our whole lives, our father has taught us that revenge is not the answer," said Leo, "You could end up taking it too far and hurt the wrong people before you protect anyone."

"You don't know that," said April, "Things could be better with the Kraang destroyed."

"April, this isn't about what could be better," said Miwa, "This is about how far you're willing to go to get what you want."

"Look, all we're saying is be careful about how far you take your anger," said Donnie, "You could end up hurting someone you care about. You could hurt Irma or any of your aunt, in the crossfire."

"That won't happen," said April, "Stop lecturing me!"

"April, we're trying to get you to see reason," said Donnie, "We don't want you to make a mistake that you'll end up regretting for the rest of your life!"

"It's my life!" April snapped, "You can't tell me how to live it!"

With that, April stormed off, leaving Miwa and the boys stunned. What they did not know was that someone else was watching them from the shadows, listening to the conversation. As April walked away, the stranger watched her and decided to use her hatred of the Kraang to his advantage.

* * *

April walked through the streets on her way home, still thinking about what the Hamato family had said. She still refused to believe that she was anything like the Shredder. She turned a corner into an alley to use it for a shortcut, when she started to get the feeling that she was not alone. Thinking it was nothing, April continued to make her way through the alley.

"They don't understand," said a mysterious voice, "And they never will. Rakka, rakka, rakka."

April swiftly turned around and asked, "Who's there?"

She scanned the area but found nothing. She thought she was hearing things until she heard the voice add, "There is an infestation on this planet, one that must be irraticated, or it will get worse."

Suddenly, a strange creature emerged from the shadows. It looked to be a giant newt with purple and orange colors, and yellow eyes. It also wore some type of technology on its chest and arms. Judging by the voice, April guessed that the creature was male.

"Who are you?" April demanded, a little fear in her voice.

"My name is K'Vathrak," said the creature, "And I am here to destroy an infestation that is our mutual enemy. I'm talking, of course, about the Kraang."

This caught April's attention. "You know about the Kraang?" She asked.

"I do," said the creature, "I have been hunting them for some time. Trying everything to rid this galaxy of them. They are pure evil and must be destroyed!"

April smiled at the creature's words and said, "Finally, someone who gets me."

"Indeed," said the creature, "I was tracking the Kraang to their latest base when I overheard you talking to those other humans. I could tell that you had differing opinions on how to handle the Kraang. When I heard that you have great hatred for the Kraang, I figured you and I could help one another."

"You certainly have my attention kthra-kvathr-k," April replied, having trouble saying his name, "Can I just call you K? I'm having a really hard time pronouncing your real name."

The creature, K, simply shrugged and said, "Makes no difference to me. Rakka, rakka, rakka."

"Alright," said April, "So, K, what type of plan did you have in mind?"

"One that will guarantee the Kraang will be gone for good," said K, with a laugh.

April smiled at that and said, "I think I like the sound of that."

* * *

Several hours later, K took April to an old factory. At first April thought that K had been joking around with her, but he explained to her that the Kraang used the factory to hide their mutagen supply. He also told her that he was positive that the Kraang would show up there to hide new canisters.

"Now, once the Kraang arrive, I'll need you to keep them busy for me while I take care of business," K explained.

"Okay," said April, "I know a couple of tricks to get their attention. But, you still haven't told me what you plan to do."

"You need not worry about that, April," said K, "Just worry about keeping the Kraang occupied while I sneak in without them knowing."

"Okay," said April. She then noticed a van pull up to the factory and said, "I think that's them!"

K looked at the vehicle and watched as four people emerged from the inside. Sure enough, it was two Kraang droids in their human disguises.

K growled and said, "That's them alright."

April saw the droids open the back of the van and carry out canisters of mutagen. "Just like you said," said April, "They're storing more mutagen. And there's no telling what they'll be capable of with this much."

"That's why we have to take care of them here and now," said K, "Get down there and keep them busy. I'll handle the rest."

"You got it," said April. She then climbed down from the roof and ran inside the factory. She stood in the open where they could see her and shouted, "Hey, emo guys!"

The Kraang looked in the direction of the shouting and saw April standing in the open.

"Kraang, there is an unidentified human in this which we are using to store the mutagen!" one of the Kraang said.

"Kraang, the unidentified human has been identified as the one called April O'Neil," said the second Kraang, "Capture April O'Neil."

"Catch me if you can!" April yelled and then turned and ran.

"Kraang, we must not allow the one known as April O'Neil to escape!" shouted the third Kraang.

"Agreed,!" said the fourth Kraang, "All Kraang, pursue the one called April O'Neil! Capture the one known as April O'Neil!"

The then ran after April with the intention of capturing her. Once they were preoccupied with April, K slipped inside the building and started making his way deeper inside. He let out a sinister chuckle as he removed a piece of technology from his gauntlet.

* * *

April continued to run through the factory, the Kraang hot on her tail. She turned into the first room she could find and slammed the door behind her. She looked around and saw that the room she was hiding in was an office. Figuring that the Kraang might eventually find her in the, April quickly hid underneath the desk and inwardly hoped that K would finish up with the plan soon.

April breathed heavily as she waited and listened to the Kraang's footsteps outside the office. She then heard the door knob turn and the door slowly creak open. She thought this was the end.

Suddenly, she heard the sounds of something being knocked to the ground followed by blasting and a scream that she thought for a moment sounded like Mikey's voice. The next thing she heard was the sound of slashing and sparks flying.

Once the noise had stopped, April slowly came out from under the desk and looked to see what happened. Once she did, she was greeted by the sight of the Kraang droids lying on the floor in ruin and the Hamato siblings in ninja gear; she also noticed that Mikey was holding his arm, probably from getting hit by a laser.

"What are you guys doing here?" April asked.

"What do mean what are _we_ doing here?" Raph asked, "We came here after hearing rumors about strange things going on and thought we should investigate. The real question is what are _you_ doing here?"

"Not that it's any of your business, but I'm here to take out the Kraang's mutagen supply," said April, "A new friend of mine that I met today found out and we're taking care of these monsters together."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Back up," said Donnie, "New friend? Someone else is here? Where?"

"He's around here somewhere," said April, "He's taking care of the mutagen while I distract the Kraang."

"Really?" Mikey asked, "What's he doing?"

April was about to answer when she suddenly realized that she was unsure herself. "I'm not entirely sure," said April, "But it's supposed to fix our problem once and for all."

Upon hearing what April said, the Hamato siblings looked at each other curiously; something did sound right about this new friend of April's.

"Um, April, what do you _really_ know about this 'friend' of yours?" Leo asked.

"What do you mean?" April asked.

"Are you sure you can trust him?" Miwa asked.

"He hates the Kraang and know that they have to go," said April, "He gets that. What's not to trust?"

"None of us are Kraang fans, April," said Donnie, "But the fact that he used you as Ashigarusha is kind of questioning."

"How dare you!" April snapped angrily. She then realized that she had no idea what that word he used meant and asked, "And what is that?"

Donnie was hesitant to answer, so Raph told her, "Ashigarusha is Japanese for Canon Fodder. In ancient Japanese warfare, the Ashigarusha were the expendable soldiers that wasted the enemy's ammunition and checked for traps before the real soldiers showed up."

"They don't do that anymore, obviously," said Leo.

April narrowed her eyes at the Hamato siblings and said, "So, you're saying I'm expendable?"

"No!" Donnie said, "We're not saying that at all!"

"But your new 'friend' might think you're expendable," said Mikey.

"What do you guys know?" April asked, "You've never met him."

"And _you_ just met him," Miwa pointed out, "How can you be sure that what he's doing won't have disastrous results? Are you so obsessed with revenge that you can't see that something's wrong?"

"You know nothing about my pain!" April yelled, "You never had someone you love taken away from you from right in front of you!"

"Yes I did!" Miwa yelled back, "I watched as the Kraang drove away with my little brother while I was powerless to do anything!"

"Donnie and my dad aren't the same!" April snapped, "You got him back! The Kraang still have my dad! Next the Kraang take Donnie, let them keep him and _then_ talk to me about pain!"

Right after she said that, April gasped in shock; she could not believe that she just said that. She saw the shocked expressions on the Hamato siblings faces, Donnie's was especially pained. She reached out to Donnie, only for him to pull away.

"I need to be alone," said Donnie, and then turned around and walked out of the office.

The others watched in sadness as Donnie walked away from them. Donnie's siblings then turned around and looked at April with anger in their faces.

Leo then broke the silence by saying, "April, you go find your friend and let him know that the Kraang have been taken care of. Mikey, go look for Donnie. Raph and Miwa, we're taking care of this mutagen supply; just be careful not to break the canisters."

As the siblings left to go do their tasks, April stopped Miwa for a second and said, "Miwa- I didn't mean- I just meant-"

Miwa glared at the red head and said, "Save it. My brothers need me."

As Miwa went to join her brothers, April stood in the office frozen in shock. How could this have happened? She just told Miwa to let the Kraang take Donnie away the next time they come just so she can feel her pain. She was willing to have one of her good friends make a sacrifice out of her brother just to prove a point! How could she be this way? This was not her. She had to find a way to make things up to them. But how?

Unfortunately, she would have to figure that out later because she knew that her new friend was still inside the factory and she had to tell him what happened. As she walked around, April could feel the glares that the Hamato siblings were shooting at her while they were loading up the Kraang's van with mutagen canisters that they intended to store at their lair for safe keeping; they filled her with so much guilt.

She looked around the lower level for some time until she finally found K. He looked unharmed and appeared to be fiddling with something that she could not see because his back was to her. April took a deep breath to calm herself down, so as not to seem upset in front of him, and then she spoke to him.

"K, we should get going," said April, "Some other warriors already took care of the Kraang that were here and are removing the mutagen, so we have no more reason to stay."

K let out a scary chuckle and said, "On the contrary, April, I believe we do have a reason to stick around, at least a little bit longer."

April was about to ask why when he turned to face and and she saw what he was holding in his hands. It appeared to be a box shaped object with some strange looking technology attached to it. There was only one thing it could possibly be.

"K, is that a bomb?!" April screamed.

"You bet," said K, "It's powerful enough to destroy anything within a five mile radius. Using a little Kraang tech, I've doubled it's power to make it destroy anything within a ten mile radius."

"Are you insane?!" April screamed, "You can't set that thing off! You don't even need that! The warriors already took care of the Kraang!"

"Yes, the Kraang that were here," said K, "But eventually, their going to send backup. This baby is going to take care of that for us. Once I set this thing up, everyone in here will have about five minutes to get away from here before this place goes sky high."

"What?!" April screamed, "That's not enough time to warn enough people to get away! I'm sure we could get away if we take the Kraang's van and floor it, but we won't have time to save any of the people who might live around here!"

"I don't care about that!" said K, "All I care about is destroying enough Kraang. Who cares if a few people get killed in the process? It's their fault for being in the wrong place at the wrong time."

As K walked past April to go find a spot to set up the bomb, April immdiately saw herself. All K cared about was destroying the Kraang, just like her. In his case, he was willing to kill innocent people. She refused to become this, no life is worth getting even with the Kraang. In that moment, April knew what she had to do, she had to stop the creature she thought to be a friend.

"I can't let you set off that bomb," April declared.

K only laughed at her and asked, "Who's going to stop me? You?"

April grabbed a discarded pipe and said, "Yes."

April then charged at K and swung the pipe at him. She missed the first time, but the second time she swung, she got him in the head. He roared in pain and stumbled backwards a little bit.

After he recovered, K growled at April and said, "Fine. If that's how you wanna play, so be it. I don't need you anyway!"

Suddenly, K pointed his arm at April and put his free hand on his wrist. A laser fired out of his gauntlet. Luckily, April jumped out of the way just in time to avoid it. K fired more lasers at her, forcing April to take cover behind a wall. As April sat in her hiding place, she breathed heavily as she tried to figure out how to get out of this mess she was in. She then spotted a discarded blaster on the floor; she figured that a Kraang must have left it behind during the craziness when she broke in. Figuring this could be her only chance, April grabbed the blaster and prepared to fire it at K.

Just as she was going to, April caught a glimpse of K's expression. It looked like he had just gotten an idea.

" _You_ might be able to avoid me, April," said K, "But let's see if your friends can."

"No!" April screamed, and then fired her blaster at the gurder above K.

The blast weakened the metal, causing it to fall on top of him. She then rushed over and took the bomb that he had dropped during the fight; there was no way she was going to leave that behind on the off chance he gets free, or the Kraang show up. Just as she was walking away, April heard a groan and looked back to see K reaching out to her.

"April, help me. Please," he begged, "I need your help."

April felt bad seeing him in that state. However, she quickly remembered what he was willing to do and glared at him as she spat, "I don't think so, you monster."

And with that, April walked from her fallen former friend, intending to regroup with her real friends. Just as she got some good distance between herself and K, she heard footsteps and looked to see the Hamato siblings running her way.

"April!" Donnie called, being the first one to reach her, "Are you alright?"

"We heard a laser fire and got worried about you and your friend," said Leo, "Where is your friend."

"Gone," said April, "And he wasn't my friend. I was just a means to an end for him."

"What is that in your arms?" Mikey asked.

"I'll explain on the way to the lair," April said, "Right now, I just wanna get out of here."

"Can't say I blame ya," said Raph, "This is starting to give _me_ the creeps. And _that's_ saying something."

With that, the friends all left the factory together, leaving behind the creature that April once called her friend.

* * *

On the way back to the lair, April explained everything that happened between her and K; even the bomb that he intended to use on the building and everything else within a ten mile radius. Donnie, of course, wasted no time in disarming it. Upon arrival at the lair, Leo called their parents and explained what happened, while Donnie and Raph treated everyone's injuries.

"I should've never trusted K," said April, "He was nothing but a monster, inside and out."

"I've been there, April," said Mikey, "Same thing happened to me with Chris Bradford. Characters like that will say anything to get you to do what they want."

"But it was because I was obsessed with my own revenge that a bunch of people almost got killed," April said, on the verge of tears, "I even nearly got _you_ guys killed."

"But you realized what was happening and stopped it before it was too late," said Miwa, "And that's what really matters."

April then stood up, walked over to Donnie and hugged as she said, "I'm so sorry. I acted so horribly. I never meant any of it. I never want the Kraang to take you."

Donnie was surprised by this, but then hugged her back and said, "It's okay now, April. Everything's going to be okay."

Just then, the kids heard man clearing his throat and turned to see Yoshi standing in the entrance to the lair. Donnie and April quickly broke apart from their embrace.

Yoshi looked directly at April and said, "April, I would like to speak with you in the dojo."

April nodded and followed Yoshi into the dojo. The two sat down on the floor across from each other.

"I was informed by Leonardo of what happened between you and that K fellow," said Yoshi, making April feel guilty, "I hope you have learned from this, April."

"I have. I was obsessed with my own revenge that it was becoming all I cared about," said April, "And I also figured out what I really want out of this training."

"Really?" Yoshi asked, "Tell me."

"I want to rescue my father and I want to be a protector, like Miwa and the boys," said April, "If you will let me continue as your student, I promise not to repeat my mistake."

Yoshi remained silent for a moment, and then said, "That is good to hear. And I look forward to seeing you in training tomorrow."

April smiled and said, "Thank you, sensei. I promise, I won't let you down."

Yoshi smiled at her and said, "I'm sure you won't."

After they finished their talk, April rushed out of the dojo and happily announced to her friends that she was going to continue her training under Yoshi. The Hamato siblings cheered in celebration for their friend.

* * *

Later, more Kraang arrived at the factory and found the droids destroyed and the mutagen canisters gone. They looked around the factory for anything else that could be useful, until one of them found something.

"Kraang, you must take a look at the thing I have found in this place," said a Kraang.

"What is the thing you have found in this place?" the second Kraang asked. He looked down and saw, undergroundearth fallen metal, K. "This creature does not appear to be of this Earth. It also does not appear to be a mutant made from mutagen."

"We must bring this creature back to base," said a third Kraang, "So as to learn more about this creature and it's origins."

"Agreed," said the second Kraang, "Secure prisoner."

As the Kraang restrained their prisoner, K could not stop thinking about how April defeated him, leading to him being so weak that he could not fight back. He inwardly swore to get revenge on her, no matter how long it takes.


	15. Enter the Shredder

**Author's Note:** I know saying this is not really necessary for most people, but I wanted to apologize for the long wait. Anyway, this chapter is going to be based on the episode "The Gauntlet". I hope you folks like it ㈳5 Also, there's going to be a special appearance from a member of the Avengers; be honest if you like it or not.

* * *

 **Enter the Shredder**

It had been about a week since the K fiasco, and things were starting to get back to normal. April had started improving in her ninja training, thanks to her sparring with her friends. During which time Donnie discovered how April looked with her hair down, and he liked what he saw. Nobody expected anything too unusual to happen for sometime, until this day.

The day started out normally enough like any Saturday, kids and teens we're going out to spend time with their friends, while adults either went to work or stayed home and spent the day with their families. In the case of the Hamato family, they were planning on spending the day together training and then a movie night; Shen was even planning on closing the store early so that they could have extra time to spend together. Shen had woken up first and got ready to make breakfast for the family; today she planned to make omelettes. Shen got out the eggs, a mixing bowl, and a wisk, and took one egg from the carton. She cracked the egg against the bowl was unexpectedly greeted by a thick dark cloud of smoke to the face. Shen screamed in surprise and then coughed as she waved the smoke away with her hands. Once the smoke cleared up, Shen got a really good look at the eggs and noticed that they had all been sealed with wax. She was quite irritated when she realized who was responsible for it.

* * *

In the bedrooms, Yoshi and the kids were making their beds and getting dressed for the day. They had all just finished getting ready when they all heard an angry scream from the kitchen.

"DONATELLO!" Shen screamed, making the family shake.

Mikey to his immediate older brother and said, "Mother sounds mad."

"I know," said Donnie, sounding nervous.

Raph poked his head into his little brother's room and said, "We all just heard mother yelling your name, Donnie. What did you do?"

Donnie sighed and answered, "You're about to find out."

The family found themselves in the kitchen with an irritated Shen looking down at Donnie as he sat in a chair.

"Would you kindly explain why I got smoke in my face when I cracked an egg to make breakfast?" Shen asked, holding up one of the eggs from the fridge.

"That's not an egg, mother," said Donnie, "It's a smoke bomb."

"Excuse me?" Shen asked.

"Last night I figured out how to make ninja smoke bombs. I figured they could come in handy," Donnie explained, "You see, what I did was I carefully drilled two holes in an eggshell, slowly blew out the contents, waited for the insides to dry, filled it with flash powder, and then sealed the holes with wax."

"Really?" Mikey asked, "That is so cool! I love you, bro!"

Yoshi looked at his son and said, "Very clever, Donatello."

Shen shot Yoshi and Mikey a warning glare and said, "Don't encourage him." She then turned back to Donnie and said, "And you, Donatello. What possessed you to think it was okay to make smoke bombs out of eggs?"

"Well, it was less conspicuous and less expensive than buying smoke bombs," said Donnie.

"I see," said Shen, "And did it occur to you to ask me first?"

"Must've slipped my mind," Donnie nervously said as he twiddled his fingers, "Sorry."

Shen crossed her arms and said, "Sorry doesn't replace the eggs that I bought specifically for the purpose of eating, nor does it clean the soot off my face and shirt."

"Sorry," said Donnie, feeling guilty, "I could clean your shirt for you along with today's laundry. And then I could go to the store and buy new eggs."

Shen thought about it for a second and then answered, "I think going grocery shopping first might be the better option."

"Okay," said Donnie, standing up from the chair, "I'll head there right now."

"I will get some grocery money for you," said Yoshi.

"No need," said Donnie, "I've got some. You know, from my job."

"Oh, right," said Yoshi. Just as Donnie went to his room to get his wallet, Yoshi remembered something and said, "Donatello, while you're at the store, would you mind picking up some tea? You know the kind I like."

"Sure," said Donnie.

"And some milk," said Leo, "We're getting a little low."

"No problem," said Donnie.

"How 'bout some spicy gummy worms?" Mikey asked.

"Mikey," said Donnie, shooting his little brother an annoyed look. However, as soon as he saw Mikey's puppy eyes, Donnie sighed and said, "I'll see if they have any."

"Thanks, D," said Mikey.

"Anything for my only little brother," said Donnie as he put his wallet and cellphone in his pockets. He then headed out the door to go to the store.

"I'm going to wash my face and soak this shirt," said Shen as she walked out of the room.

Yoshi and the remaining teens stood where they were in silence for a moment until Raph said, "I'm gonna have a pop tart. You guys want one?"

* * *

A few minutes later, Donnie came out of the grocery store with two bags in his hands; one with a half gallon of milk and the other with a dozen eggs, a box of tea, and a bag of spicy gummy worms. Donnie them put the bags in his backpack, unlocked his bike, and mounted it. He was just about to take off when he heard screaming coming from across the street. He looked and saw April running away from a giant pidgeon that appeared to have a cross between arms and wings.

The giant bird was chasing April and was getting closer with it's talons open, ready to grab her. Seeing this, Donnie wasted no time in rushing to his crush's aid. He took out his collapsable Bo staff and peddled towards April and the pidgeon man at high speed. The pidgeon man was just inches away from grabbing April when he was hit in the face by Donnie's staff. The pidgeon man flew to the left and landed hard on the ground.

"You okay, April?" Donnie asked.

"I am now," said April, catching her breath, "Thanks, Donnie."

"No problem," said Donnie, "Now let's get out of here before he gets back up."

"Good idea," said April.

Donnie gestured to the back of his bike and said, "Hop on. I'll take you to my place."

"Okay," said April, and then she hopped on the back of Donnie's bike.

"Hang on tight," said Donnie, "I don't do this very often."

April wrapped her arms around Donnie's neck, causing him to blush, and then he took off as fast as he could towards the antique store. After they left, the pidgeon man woke up and was dizzy. Once he recovered, the pidgeon man looked around for the girl was supposed to find, but found no trace of her or the guy that hit him with a long stick.

"Oh, man," the pidgeon man whined.

* * *

After some peddling, Donnie and April finally arrived at the antique store. Donnie chained and locked his bike and then he and April rushed inside to the upper level. Donnie quickly opened the door and allowed April to enter first and then he followed close behind and closed the door behind him. Mikey heard the door close and went to greet his brother and get the groceries.

"Hey, D! Glad you're back! Did you get my gummy worms?" Mikey said as he went to greet his brother. He stopped in his tracks when he saw that Donnie was not alone, "April?"

"Hi, Mikey," said April, still freaked out from before.

"Donnie, you didn't tell me she was coming over," said Mikey, "I thought we told each other everything."

"Nevermind, Mikey," said Donnie, "Get the family into the living room. It's an emergency!"

"Okay," said Mikey. He got ready to do just that, stopping only once to say, "Don't forget to put the milk and eggs in the fridge."

Immediately, Donnie had April go into the living room while he put the groceries away. After the family gathered into the living room, Donnie took a seat next to April and together, they told Donnie's family about the giant pidgeon that went after April; Raph and Miwa laughed at first because it sounded so crazy, earning them each a disapproving scowl from their parents.

"April, can you describe the creature?" Yoshi asked.

"It was about your height, maybe a little shorter," April explained, "It had hands on the ends of it's wings. It's talons were razor sharp. It would've torn me to pieces... If Donnie hadn't whacked him in the head with his staff."

Raph and Miwa laughed once again, earning them more looks of disapproval. "What?" Miwa asked, "Donnie hit a pidgeon man square in the face with his staff! You gotta admit that's a pretty funny mental image."

"Sure is," Raph agreed, laughing a bit.

"Raphael! Miwa!" Yoshi scolded, "Clearly April is upset!"

"Yeah, guys," said Mikey, "Don't be so insensitive."

"Guys, we weren't laughing at April," said Miwa, "We were laughing at the pidgeon man."

"It doesn't matter," said Leo, "The point is April is being stalked. As her friends, we have to do something to help her."

"I agree," said Shen, "Something must be done."

"We could try setting a trap for it," said Raph.

"That could work," said Miwa, "And I know just what to use for bait. Now, I want to stress that it's not my first choice, but it might be the only way."

"Are we using bread crumbs?" Mikey asked, "Pidgeons eat bread crumbs."

"Actually, Mikey, I was thinking about using something that we know for sure that the pidgeon man will be after," said Miwa.

"Begals?" Mikey guessed.

"April," Miwa said.

"What?!" Mikey shrieked. And then he blocked April and said, "Sis, she's our friend! And Donnie likes her!"

"Yeah!" April agreed.

"Look, I'm not any happier about the idea than you are," said Miwa, "But we have no other way to catch this creature and get rid of it once and for all."

April still seemed unsure, so Donnie put his hand on her shoulder and looked her in the eye as he told her in a reassuring voice, "I promise, April, I won't let anything happen to you."

April smiled at the promise and hugged Donnie, causing him to blush. He trembled as he inched his arms up to wrap them around April's waist until he finally returned the embrace. Once the two broke from the embrace, they started leave the others to go to the lair to gear up. They were just getting ready to head out the door when they heard Yoshi call out to them.

"Wait!" Yoshi called. The kids stopped in their tracks and listened as he said, "You do not yet know what you are facing. I suggest you study your opponent before confronting it."

"With all due respect, father, it's a pidgeon," said Leo, "Besides, Donnie knocked him out all alone with just his collapsable Bo staff. How hard can it be for the rest of us?"

"What you know about your enemy is dangerous to them. What you _think_ you know is dangerous to you," said Yoshi, "I fear that you are all becoming over confident."

"Father, since we became active ninjas, we've fought tons of enemies. Human, mutant, and alien," said Raph, "Maybe we're not over confident. Maybe we're just that good."

With that, the kids went out the door to gear up and set there trap. Once they were gone, Yoshi sighed and shook his head. Shen put a hand on her husband's shoulder in sympathy.

"I'm worried about them too, my love," said Shen.

"I know," said Yoshi, "I am too."

* * *

Meanwhile, tensions were pretty high since they had been searching for the Hamato family and had yet to find any of them. Bradford and Xever walked into the throne room and were greated by the Shredder's dog, Hachiko, growling and barking at them.

"It's okay, Hachiko. I'm not gonna hurt you," said Bradford as he knelt down to the dog's level. He reached out to pet, only to receive a bite on his hand. "Ow!"

"He is not pleased with you," said a voice behind Bradford. He and Xever turned around and saw the Shredder approaching them, "And neither am I. I entrusted you both with tracking down Hamato Yoshi, Tang Shen, and their children, and you have failed."

Shredder looked down at Bradford, who had been bowing, glared at him and said, "I spent years molding you into my image, teaching you my darkest secrets. And you shame me with your incompetence." Xever snickered at Bradford's misfortune until Shredder turned his attention to him and said, "And you. I should've left you to root in that prison where I found you."

"Master, the Purple Dragons getting arrested was not my fault," said Xever.

"But you still haven't gotten any results," a feminine voice called. Everyone looked to see Kuro enter the room. "But that's what happens when you rely solely on street thugs."

She smiled smugly as she approached her father's throne. Hachiko saw Kuro and his demeanor changed from angry to friendly and her sat down and extended his paw so she could shake it. Kuro took Hachiko's paw and shook it.

"Good boy," said Kuro as she gave the dog a biscuit.

Bradford frowned and grumbled, "Oh, sure, be nice to the Ice Princess."

"That 'Ice Princess' is my daughter, and my greatest pupil. I would be respectful if I were you," the Shredder said, having heard what Bradford said. Bradford shrank in fear and the Shredder turned to his daughter and asked, "Kuro, what have you learned?"

"My ninjas found a man at a doctor's office who bore a resemblance to Hamato," Kuro explained, "But we don't know for sure if it's him. I'm going to have them investigate him more thoroughly and get all the facts."

"That's good for now. Excellent job, my daughter," said the Shredder, "Bradford and Xever, you will join her in investigating the man she found."

"What?!" Bradford asked while Xever looked shocked by what his master said, "Master, I can't waste my time investigating some random guy! Not when the ninjas have the real information!"

"You need not worry about the ninjas," the Shredder said, "I will handle them myself."

* * *

While the Shredder and his minions were working on investigating Yoshi, the kids were working on capturing the pidgeon man that seemed to be hunting April. April walked stand in an alley, completely exposed, while the ninja siblings hid in the shadows and waited to attack the pidgeon man when he came flying at April.

"Here I am. Walkin' around in the big city. All alone!" April said out loud, trying and failing to act natural, "I hope no crazy pidgeon man sneaks up on me. That would be the _last_ thing I'd want."

"Ugh!" Miwa groaned. She then climbed out from her hiding place, walked up to April, and asked, "What the heck are you doing?!"

"What?" April asked, "You wanted me to be bait. I'm bait."

"By saying, 'I hope no crazy pidgeon man sneaks up on me'?" Miwa asked, "You might as well just announce 'this is trap' loud enough for the whole city to hear."

"Get off my back!" April said back, "What do you want me to do?"

"You could just walk and keep your mouth shut. There's no acting involved. Just walk around and act natural," Miwa said. She then noticed her brothers looking at her and said, "Yeah, I said it."

Miwa went back to her hiding place, leaving April alone. April herself rolled her eyes and started walking through the alley while whispering to herself, "This is me acting natural. Totally defenseless against, oh I don't know, any crazy pidgeon man that should happen upon me."

Miwa silently groaned and smacked her forehead. Suddenly, everyone heard April scream and looked up to see the pidgeon man flying straight towards her. It was merely a few feet away from her when Donnie used a tazer he made to electrocute the bird man. The bird man writhed in agony until he fell to the ground. Once he was on the ground, the bird man was tackled by the rest of the ninja siblings and restrained.

"Okay, okay! I call!" the pidgeon man said, pounding the ground like a wrestler does when he wants to give up, "Jeez Louise!"

"And you said I wasn't good bait," April said, smirking at Miwa.

"I never said you weren't good bait," Miwa clarified, "I said you were a bad actress."

April scowled at Miwa and Donnie put a consoling hand on her shoulder and said, "Don't take it too personally, April. She's tough on just about everyone."

"Okay, start talking, pidgeon man!" Leo demanded.

"I have a name you know!" the pidgeon man whined, not appreciating these ninjas treating him like he has no feelings.

"And we don't care what it is," said Raph.

"It's Pete," said the pidgeon man.

"Clever," said Mikey, "Pete the Pidgeon. No wait... Pidgeon Pete!"

"Whatever," said Leo, annoyed with his baby brother. He turned his attention back to the pidgeon and asked, "Why were you trying to hurt April, Pete?"

"I didn't wanna hurt her, I was trying to bring her a message," Pete explained, "From her _father._ "

Hearing that the pidgeon had a message for her from father caught April's attention and she told the ninjas, "Let him up."

The ninjas released the pidgeon man and he stood up and explained, "We were both _guests_ of the Kraang. They poured some weird ooze on me and turned me into _this!_ " He gestured to himself as he finished.

"Oh, that must've been horrible," April said sympathetically, "I mean, being turned into a... _pidgeon_."

"Actually, I started out as a pidgeon," said Pete with a smile, earning him a distasteful look from April; which Pete did not seem to notice.

"Told ya bread crumbs would've worked," Mikey said.

"You got bread crumbs?!" Pete asked as he shook Mikey, as if that would make the crumbs fall out. His siblings immediately rushed to get Pete to stop.

Pete finally stopped shaking Mikey when April cleared throat and said, "Excuse me... My father."

"Oh, right," said Pete, dropping Mikey. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a smartphone, probably Kirby's, and handed it to April.

April took the Phone and found a video saved on it. April hit 'play' and an image of her father appeared. He looked worried as he said, " _April, something terrible is about to happen. I-I don't know what, but it's extremely important that you get out of the city as soon as you can. Save yourself. And remember, I love you._ "

April hugged the phone to her chest and said, "I love you too, Daddy."

"Do you have any idea what he's talking about?" Leo asked Pete.

"I'm just the messenger," said Pete.

"We better try to find out," said Miwa, "If we can do that, then we might have a chance to stop it."

"Just to be safe, we better do as Mr. O'Neil said and get April out of the city," said Donnie.

"I'm not going anywhere without my dad," April said determinedly.

"April, you heard what your dad said," Donnie reminded her, "Something really bad is gonna happen."

"Then we better hurry," April said definitely.

"Guys, help get through to her," said Donnie.

"April, your father doesn't want anything to happen to you," said Miwa, "If there's a chance to get you to safety, he wants to take it."

"Put yourself in my position," said April, "What it was one or both your parents. Could you leave them behind? And what about friends? Don't you guys have other friends that you wanna save too?"

The ninjas took in April's words and realized that she was right. If it had been one of their parents or both of them, they would want to take whatever chance they could to save them. She was also that they had other friends that they would want to save but did know if they could get them to leave the city. The only sensible option was to break into wherever Kirby O'Neil was being held and try to find out what the Kraang's plot by hacking into their computer system.

Leo turned to Pete and asked, "Can you tell us where they're holding him?"

"I can," said Pete, "But it's gonna cost you a looot of bread."

"We're talking actual bread, right?" Leo asked, raising an eyebrow.

Pete pidgeon sounds as he nodded his head and then he answered, "Yeah. Sourdough."

"Done," said Leo.

With that, Pete told April and the ninjas where Kirby was being held. Unbeknownst to them, a team of Foot Clan ninjas was watching them. After Pete told April and the Hamato ninjas where to go and flew out of the alley, the Foot ninjas followed the Hamato ninjas and texted Bradford their location.

* * *

Meanwhile, Bradford and Xever walked around Chinatown in search of any information on the man that Kuro had found out about. However, they were successful due to the fact that they were not really trying much. At one point, Xever convinced Bradford to stop at a fish market to purchase a red snakehead fish in a tank. After paying for the fish, Xever reached into the tank and pulled the fish out.

"That is the ugliest thing I've ever seen," said Bradford, meaning the fish. He then turned to Xever and said, "Present company excluded."

"Lighten up, Bradford," said Xever.

Xever tossed the fish to the seller so he could prepare it for him. The seller caught the fish and, with difficulty due to it being wiggly, brought it to the cutting board to prepare it for his customer. While the seller was working on preparing the fish, Bradford and Xever had a conversation.

"You realize we have a problem, right?" Bradford asked.

"If you mean us taking orders from that little girl, then yes," said Xever, "I have indeed noticed. If I had the opportunity, I would crush that little brat like a bug."

"Don't count on crushing her," said Bradford, "She fought me several times and won. And even if you could, you'd still have master Shredder to worry about. He would hunt you down and end your life. And believe me when I tell you that he will not give up until he finds you."

"Good point," said Xever.

"But we can still upstage her," said Bradford, "I had a few ninjas patrol the city and keep an eye out for the ninja kids. If we deliver them to master Shredder saying we found them by chance, imagine what he'll think."

Xever smiled and said, "I imagine he would be most pleased."

Suddenly, Bradford felt his phone buzz and checked it for messages. He read the text from one of his ninjas and smiled.

"What is that?" Xever asked.

"Opportunity," Bradford explained. He then texted back saying for the ninjas to stay on the ninjas tails and report to him where they will go next.

* * *

As it turned out, the Kraang were holding Kirby at a base disguised as a normal building. They found an air vent and decided to use it to sneak in. After a little work, Donnie finally managed to pry off the top of the vent.

"Piece of cake," said Donnie.

"Oh, I love cake," said Mikey.

"Let's do this!" April said enthusiastically and got ready to climb down.

Leo stopped her and said, "We need you to wait here."

"Are you crazy?!" April asked, "My dad's in there!"

"Along with who-knows-how-many Kraang," said Leo.

"You're letting _him_ go!" April said, pointing at Donnie, "And I'm pretty sure he's a Kraang target."

"That's different," said Miwa, "The Kraang don't recognize him like this and he's a ninja."

"Exactly what I was saying," said Leo, "This requires stealth and mobility. Leave it to the pros."

"I can't just do nothing!" April asked.

"You won't be doing nothing," said Leo. He handed her a rope and said, "We need you to lower this rope when we give the signal."

April reluctantly took the rope and watched as her friends climbed down the vent one at a time into the building. April could only hope that her friends succeed.

* * *

Inside the building, the team quickly hid from the patrolling Kraang. At one point, Mikey fell and alerted a Kraang. It would have fired on him had it not been for Raph taking it out at that exact moment.

Mikey picked up the unconscious Kraang and said, "Hey, I've got an idea. Instead of hacking into their computer, we could just get the answers from a Kraang."

"And how do you suggest we do that?" Raph asked, "They're not exactly talkative like this. And they're not exactly friendly in their robot bodies."

"We have a psychic," Mikey reminded his family, "He could read it's mind like with Metalhead."

"I don't know," said Donnie, "Last time it was an accident. I have been practicing, but not for that long."

"First time for everything," said Mikey, holding the Kraang out to his twin, "C'mon, Tetsuo, I believe in you. You can do it."

Donnie sighed and said, "Okay. I'll try. The rest of you, look for Mr. O'Neil."

"We're not leaving you alone," said Leo, "One of us should stay with you."

"I'll stay," said Miwa, "I'll make sure the Kraang don't get the drop on him."

"Good," said Leo, "Kurogane, Naoto, you two are with me. We're gonna go get Me. O'Neil."

With a nod, the team split up. Leo, Raph, and Mikey ran down the hallway in search of Kirby, while Miwa and Donnie stayed behind to try to get information out of the Kraang via Donnie's powers. Donnie closed his eyes and concentrated on the Kraang's mind, trying to read it's thoughts and memories. At first he did not get anything. But, after much concentration, he finally started getting some images.

"I think I'm getting something," said Donnie. Donnie kept his concentration on the Kraang's mind and allowed the images to enter his own mind. It did not take Donnie long to interpret the images. "Oh no. We gotta find the others. Now!"

"What did you see?" Miwa asked.

"I know what the Kraang are up to," said Donnie, "They planted a big mutagen downtown, on the roof of the Wolf Hotel! And their use it to disperse ooze over half the city!"

Miwa gasped and said, "We need to hurry and find the others!"

* * *

While Miwa and Donnie rushed to find their brothers, said brothers had just found the cell where Kirby O'Neil was being held. Leo wasted no time in picking the door lock. Mikey knocked on the window to get Kirby's attention. Kirby looked outside and was pleasantly surprised to see the familiar ninjas.

"You're the ninjas who rescued my daughter and her friend Donatello," said Kirby, "How are they now? Is my daughter safe? Did you get Donatello back to his family?"

"They're both fine," said Leo, "Donatello's with his family and April's outside."

"Wait, you mean she's still in the city?" Kirby asked in surprise. He signed and said, "I should've known. That girl can be so stubborn."

"Yeah, we noticed," said Raph, "Anyway, it may take a while to get that lock, so maybe you could tell us what the deal is with the Kraang."

"They're aliens from another dimension," Kirby explained, "When they came here from their dimension, Dimension X, they brought the mutagen with them."

"Yeah, but Karai heard implications that the mutagen wasn't supposed to turn people into monsters," said Leo, while still working on the lock.

"That's true," said Kirby, "Apparently the physical laws of their universe are different from ours. They started abducting scientists to modify the mutagen. They especially want Donatello."

"Why?" Leo asked, trying to hold back the vemon in his tone.

"I heard them say that it was because he has much potential," said Kirby, "Apparently, the Kraang believe that that boy's mind could nearly rival their own and could help them in many ways."

"Well they're not getting him," said Mikey, "Not if we have anything to say about it!"

"What do they want the ooze to do?" Leo asked.

"I wish I knew," Kirby said.

"Are there any other scientists here in this building?" Mikey asked.

"Two," said Kirby, "They're Dr. Bruce Banner and a university science student named Mona Lisa De Angelo."

"That first name sounds familiar," said Mikey, "Where have I heard that name before?"

"And the second name sounds Italian," said Raph.

"I think she might be of Italian descent," said Kirby.

"Guys!" a familiar female voice called. The three boys turned their heads around in time to see their brother and sister coming their way. "We've got a problem!"

"The Kraang are gonna set off a mutagen bomb that's gonna disperse ooze all over half the city!" Donnie added. He then spotted Kirby and said, "Hi, Me. O'Neil. Your daughter's really nice."

Kirby raised an eyebrow at the statement. Leo ignored Donnie's April comment and got back to picking the lock. Mikey decided to try to help, despite his oldest brother's protest. This led to a shoving match, which ended in Mikey pushing Leo into a button that tripped the alarm.

The older ninjas glared at Mikey, who merely said, "Sorry." And then Mikey crossed the right wires and opened the cell, freeing Kirby. Needless to say, the other ninjas were surprised.

"Did Naoto just unlock that door?" Raph asked.

"Naoto just unlocked that door," said Miwa.

"Never mind that," said Leo, "We gotta get out of here!"

"What about the other two?" Mikey asked, "We can't just leave them."

"What?!" Miwa asked.

"There's two more people trapped here," said Leo.

"We don't have time to get them," said Miwa.

"We will seeing as I know how to unlock the doors," said Mikey. Miwa still seemed doubtful, so Mikey gave her the puppy eyes and said, "Please don't make us leave them."

Finally, Miwa caved and said, "Alright, but fast."

Mikey cheered and Kirby led the teens down the hall to where the other two scientists were being held. Along the way, Miwa remarked to her other four brothers, "I hate it when he uses the puppy eyes against me."

"You're not the only one, sis," said Raph, "Believe me."

Once they reached a pair of cells that were across from each other, Kirby told them that those were the cells which held Dr. Banner and Mona Lisa. Mikey rushed to one cell and started fiddling with the lock. Donnie went to start on the other one, but Raph chose to do it his way seeing as they were crunched for time; and that meant stabbing the lock with his Sai.

Mikey got the first cell open and was greeted by a man with brown hear. He smiled under his mask and said, "Hi, Dr. Banner! We're here to bust you out!"

"Thanks," said Dr. Banner, "Man, Tony's never gonna let me hear the end of this."

"Who?" Mikey asked.

"Never mind," said Dr. Banner as he exited the cell, "Let's go."

"We will after we get the last one out," said Leo. Right at that moment, Raph finally got the door open. He looked inside and immediately dropped his weapon and stared at the inside. "Kurogane, are you okay?"

The others were confused until a person stepped out. It was a young girl, who appeared to be not too much older than Miwa, Leo, and Raph. She had brown Bob cut hair and green eyes. She was a little bit taller than Miwa and had an athletic build. She was currently dressed in a black T-shirt, dark blue jeans, and a pair of black hiking boots. Raph was mesmorized by the girls' beauty; he wondered if this was how Donnie felt when he was around April.

"Are you alright?" the girl asked, "You look flustered."

Raph snapped out of his daze and said, "Y-yeah. I'm fine. Are you Mona Lisa De Angelo?"

"Yes, I am," the girl said.

"Great," said Raph, "We're busting you out of here. Come on."

"Okay," said Mona Lisa, and then she grabbed Raph's hand and ran out with him and the others. Raph blushed when she grabbed his hand.

Donnie then noticed that Dr. Banner had some type of collar around his neck. "Hold on," said Donnie, "Let me get that collar off you. Hold still."

Dr. Banner started fiddling with the collar wires until he heard a small beep and it came off. Dr. Banner smiled and said, "Thanks. That was a big help."

"You're welcome," said Donnie. Although, he could not ignore the feeling that Dr. Banner had something up his sleeve. Donnie then got the strangest feeling that he had heard the name Bruce Banner before. He remembered reading his scientific work, but something told him that that was not the only thing he remembered about him; where else did he recognize him from?

The group ran as fast as they could through base. Unfortunately, the Kraang found them and open fired on the group. This forced them to duck behind some crates for safety. Luckily, it was right beneath the vent where they snuck. Leo started making pidgeon noises to signal April to drop the rope.

"What are you doing?" Raph asked, and then shouted, "April, throw the rope!"

April looked down and, upon seeing her father, shouted, "Dad!"

"April!" Kirby shouted back.

April threw down the rope for her father and friends to climb up. Unfortunately, the Kraang continued firing at them. Raph kicked an oil drum at the Kraang and managed to down a few of them, unfortunately, more were still coming. A couple got really close, but Raph and Miwa took them out with Raph's Sai and Miwa's Tanto, causing one Kraang to drop it's blaster. One almost got got them until Mona Lisa kicked away. She then grabbed the fallen blaster and fired at them. Raph stared at Mona Lisa in awe as she fired at the aliens, seemingly, without fear.

"She's amazing," Raph whispered.

"Oooh," said Mikey, "Someone's got a crush."

"Shut up!" Raph snapped.

"Why would you even like her, anyway?" Mikey asked, "She's taller and probably a better fighter than you."

"Exactly," said Raph, and then he smiled, "What a woman."

"Whatever floats your boat," said Mikey. And then he had to dive to avoid another laser blast.

"There's too many of them!" Leo yelled.

"I can keep them busy," said Dr. Banner, standing up.

"But we can't leave you here!" Donnie protested, "We might not be able to get you out!"

"Don't worry about me," said Dr. Banner, walking towards the Kraang, "All I need to do is show them my other half."

"What are you talking about?" Mikey asked.

"You'll see in a minute," said Dr. Banner, sounding confident.

"Kraang, the one known as Bruce Banner is not wearing the collar that was designed to hold back that which is known as the other half," one Kraang informed the rest.

"Is that a problem?" another Kraang asked.

"For you, it is," said Dr. Banner as his eyes, hair, and skin turned green.

Right before everyone's eyes, Dr. Banner's body started to grow, ripping his clothes. They also could have sworn that they heard him growling. It was at that moment that Donnie and Mikey realized why the name Bruce Banner sounded so familiar.

"Guys, I just remembered where I heard of him from," said Mikey.

"Me too," said Donnie, "He's a member of the Avengers."

"He's the Incredible Hulk!" Donnie and Mikey said in unison.

After his transformation was finished, the Hulk growled and started smashing Kraang left and right. The Kraang tried to fight back, but the Hulk was too much for them. The ninjas, Kirby, and Mona Lisa decided to use take the chance they were being given and escape. One by one they climbed up the rope up to meet up with April. Once they were all outside April hugged her father and he hugged her back.

"I'm so glad you're back," said April.

"I'm glad you're safe," said Kirby.

The Hamato siblings smiled at the reunion and then Mona Lisa tapped Raph's shoulder and got his attention. Raph jumped and blushed when he saw who it was.

"I wanted to thank you for getting me out," said Mona Lisa.

"No problem," said Raph, "And you were pretty awesome back there. The way you handled those Kraang, I mean."

"You were amazing as well," said Mona Lisa, with a smile.

The two stared at each other until Miwa cleared her throat and reminded, "We still have to disarm that mutagen bomb."

"But what about Dr. Banner?" Mikey asked. Suddenly, everyone felt a tremor and looked down at the street and saw the Hulk break through the wall and run through the street. "Never mind."

"Alright, back to business," said Leo. He looked at the civilians and said "You three get to safety. We'll go to the Wolf Hotel and take care of that mutagen bomb."

"Okay," said April. She hugged Donnie and then added, "Be careful."

"We will," said Donnie, and then he broke the hug and looked her in the eye and said, "I promise."

"I guess this is goodbye, Mona," said Raph.

"For now," said Mona Lisa, and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "I look forward to seeing you again, Kurogane."

And with that, she rushed down fire escape and disappeared into the night; Raph felt sad watching Mona leave, because he did not get a chance to tell her how to contact him or even his real name. Kirby and April followed close behind, April promising to tell the ninjas' parents were safe. After the civilians left, the ninjas took off for the Wolf Hotel to disarm the mutagen bomb. Unfortunately, they did not notice the Foot Clan ninjas listening to them and informing Bradford where they were going next.

* * *

At the Wolf Hotel, the giant mutagen bomb was nearly ready to go off. To make double sure that they did not have any more complications, the Kraang had guards stationed on the roof as well as the technicians. One got impatient and asked how much longer they had to wait for the bomb to go off. After a technician answered that it would take five minutes, an arrow with a fire cracker attached to it nailed the alien in it's robot head. Before the Kraang knew it, many fire cracker arrows came flying at them courtesy of the Hamato clan ninjas. In not much time, the ninjas took out all of the Kraang droids. The alien brains tried to scurry away, one even slipped undergroundearth Raph. Miwa remembered how Donnie the one Kraang's mind back at the base and knocked one unconscious, figuring that it might be helpful.

Mikey gave Raph a mischievous look and asked, "I bet you wish Mona Lisa was here to see that," said Mikey.

"Shut up!" Raph snapped, blushing.

After the Kraang were taken care of, Leo looked at Donnie and said, being careful in case of Kraang listening, "Do your thing, Tetsuo."

Donnie pried off the covering to take a look at the inner workings of the bomb and disarm it. His face dropped when he saw the complexity of the bombs internal wiring.

"Uh oh," said Donnie.

"What do mean 'uh oh'?" Leo asked in worry, "You said on the way here that you knew how to do this."

"I didn't count on a design this complex, Ryu," said Donnie indignantly, careful not to use his brothers' real name.

"They're aliens from another dimension!" said Leo in exasperation, "What did you expect? A big round ball with a lit fuse that said 'bomb'?"

Donnie scowled, "No, but this-"

Raph cut off their argument by sarcastically saying, "Boy, I sure hope this argument goes on for another four minutes and fifteen seconds!"

"I think I have a solution," Miwa announced. She held up the unconscious Kraang and explained, "Tetsuo can get the schematic for the bomb from this Kraang's head like you did back at the base."

Donnie thought for a second and then said, "You know, that might work."

He took the Kraang and focused on it's mind to search for the bomb schematic. In no time, he found it and now knew exactly how the bomb worked. After he was finished, the Kraang woke up and saw itself in Donnie's hands and fled in fear.

He turned to his siblings and said, "I know what to do now. Just leave it to me."

Suddenly, Leo spotted something out of the corner of his eye and said, "Guys, we've got a problem."

Everyone looked up and saw Bradford, in his red uniform, and Xever standing on the hotel sign looking down at them.

"Oh, you've gotta be kidding me," said Miwa, "Don't these guys have anything better to do?"

"Guess not," said Leo, "Tetsuo, take care of the bomb. We'll handle these guys."

"Okay," said Donnie, and then he went to work on the bomb.

"Would you guys get out of here?!" Raph asked, "This is a really bad time for a fight!"

"Oh, we're leaving," said Bradford as he and Xever jumped down to face their opponents, "And you're coming us. _All_ of you."

"Our master has some questions for you," said Xever.

"So, make it easy for yourselves and come quietly," said Bradford, "Or you can make things difficult."

"Listen, guys, that giant bomb right there is gonna go off unless it's stopped," said Leo, "You have to realize how serious this situation is."

Bradford merely smirked and said, "I was hoping you would choose difficult. Otherwise I would've brought my weapons for nothing."

Without warning, Bradford and Xever charged at the teens. Bradford used his strength and speed to fight, while Xever relied on his flexibility and deadly force. While the two bad guys took on four of the Hamato ninjas, Donnie was forced to keep his attention on the bomb, so he could not help his siblings until he was done.

"If that thing goes off, it'll wipe us all out!" Leo said, trying to reason with his opponents.

"Than surrender and we'll let you disarm it," said Bradford.

"Tetsuo, hurry up with that bomb!" Raph, dodging an attack from Xever, "These guys aren't giving up!"

"I'm almost done!" Donnie called, still cutting wires.

While his siblings continued to battle the bad guys, Donnie was finally down to two wires. Using his wire cutters, Donnie snipped a green striped wire and the clock stopped; in other words, the bombed was disarmed. With the bomb taken care of, Donnie pulled out his bo staff and charged in to join the fight.

With their entire team back together, the Hamato ninjas gained the upper hand. Eventually, the team had Bradford and Xever trapped with their backs to each along the side of the bomb. The bad guys tried to look for a way out but could not find one.

"You are worthy adversaries, but the fight is ours," said Leo, in his best heroic voice, "Lay down your weapons."

"How long have you been waiting to use that line?" Miwa asked, amused by her younger twin.

"Not that long," said Leo, in his regular voice.

"We will never surrender!" Xever declared.

"You don't have a choice," said Leo, "You've lost."

"I won't return to the Shredder a failure," Bradford said in a scary voice, "I refuse to live with that shame."

"Uh, guys, he's starting to creep me out," said Mikey.

Bradford raised his sword and said, "I'm going down, I'm taking every single one of you with me!"

"What are you doing?!" Xever shrieked, "You fool!"

"No!" the Hamato ninjas screamed.

Before anyone could stop him, Bradford plunged his sword into the glass and broke it. Suddenly, Mutagen spilled out from the cracks and washed Bradford and Xever away. The Hamato ninjas jumped back before the spill, so they were safe from the mutagen. Bradford and Xever, on the other hand, ended up being washed away with the rest of the spilled mutagen; with the mutagen gone, the bomb was now completely useless. Once the bad guys were gone, the ninja teens exchanged looks and started cheering.

"That was awesome!" Mikey cheered.

"I'll say!" Raph agreed, "We took down the Kraang, two of Shredder's top henchmen, defused a mutagen bomb, and saved New York City. We're not over confident."

"We're just that good," Leo finished.

"C'mon, let's go grab some pizza," said Miwa.

"Aw yeah! Pizza!" Mikey cheered.

"I'm starving," said Donnie.

The siblings started to walk away, pleased with their most recent victory, when they heard a deep, menacing voice say, "Your skills are impressive."

The siblings whirled around to find the speaker. They found him. Standing on the very top of the deactivated bomb was a man completely clad in spiky armor and a metallic helmet covering his face. His very presence sent chills down the Hamato teens spines. He glared at them before he jumped down from the bomb to face the ninjas. The ninjas were now able to get a better look at the man's eyes and could see that he appeared to be blind in one eye.

"But they will not save you," said the man, taking a fighting stance.

Everyone's eyes widened in fear as they remembered the cautionary tales that their parents had told them for years; since before they started their ninja training.

"Guys, do you think that's... Oroku Saki... The Shredder?" Donnie asked.

"Well, it's definitely _a_ Shredder," said Raph, hiding his fear.

"There is undoubtedly a fascinating story how you children became the students of my old nemesis," said the Shredder, striding over to the teens, "Perhaps if you can provide me with the information that I want, I will let you live long enough to tell the tale."

"You're gonna have to catch us first!" said Mikey, pulling out what looked like an egg, "This here is a homemade smoke bomb! See ya sucks!"

Mikey threw the egg on the ground, expecting smoke. Unfortunately, all anyone heard was a cracking sound. Everyone looked down and saw that Mikey had thrown down an ordinary egg, which was spilling yolk and egg white all over the ground.

"Oops," said Mikey, "I think I grabbed the wrong eggs."

Seeing that there was no escape, the teens prepared for battle as the Shredder charged at them with his claws extended. They were barely able to jump out of the way in time before they all charged to attack him.

Raph was the first to charge, but the Shredder easily defeated him by kicking him in the stomach and sending him flying into the sign. Leo tried to avenge his brother only for the Shredder to disarm him and knock him down. Donnie tried as well, but the Shredder took his bo staff and smacked Donnie in the head before delivering a punch. Miwa chose to keep her distance and throw her Tessen. Miwa nailed the Shredder in the head, distracting him long enough for Mikey to take a shot at him with his nunchucks. Unfortunately, the Shredder caught him and threw him off the roof; luckily, Mikey caught the edge and swung back up. Miwa tried to charge, but the Shredder kicked her away. Leo and Donnie got up in time to back their sister up, giving Mikey time to check on Raph. Raph seemed to be okay and able to get up and fight. Raph and Mikey then rejoined their brothers and sister in the fight against the Shredder. The teens threw everything they had at the Shredder, Mikey even restrained him with his kusarigama chain. In retaliation, the Shredder broke the chain and sliced through the hotel sign. The teens had to all dive to avoid being crushed.

After the sign fell, the teens regrouped in hopes of catching their breath. Just as they did regroup, however, the Shredder hovered over them. Seeing no other choice, the five readied their weapons and prepared for round two. The Shredder merely looked them over before charging at them as they charged back. One by one, the Shredder defeated all five ninjas.

Once they were all down, the Shredder loomed over the teens and said, "Now, tell me where I can find Hamato Yoshi."

"Why _should_ we?" Miwa spat, blood dripping down from her mouth, "So you can kill him? What makes you think we'll betray him?"

"You might not be so loyal to him if you knew him the way I did," the Shredder retorted.

"We know him well enough," said Leo.

"I doubt you know everything," said the Shredder, "He took something precious from me. Something that I can never take back."

"What's that? He steal your girlfriend or something?" Mikey asked, assuming that he meant their mother, "Cause, if that's the case, you really are petty."

"No. At least, not just my first love," said Shredder, "He took my son from me."

"What?!" all five siblings asked in shock. He was doing this because of Raph?!

"It was your master who took my Sousuke away from me," said the Shredder, "It's because of him that Sousuke is dead!"

This was a big shock for Raph. Not only did he discover that the Shredder thought he was dead, but the way he was acting too. He was so angry and appeared to be upset. It looked like... The Shredder cared for him. This was something Raphael was not prepared for.

"However, I am willing to forgive Tang Shen and her children. And even accept them as my family," said the Shredder, "Now, tell me where to find the Hamato family."

Before anyone could do or say anything, two large blobs of mutagen landed on the roof. The Shredder turned around and saw the ooze melting away to reveal a giant red snakehead fish with arms and a giant man who literally looked like a dog, like Hachiko, wearing red pants.

The fish reached out to the Shredder and gasped, in Xever's voice, "Help me." Shredder also could have sworn that the dog man's moaning sounded like Bradford.

"Xever? Bradford?" the Shredder asked. He turned his attention back to where the ninja teens were and found them gone; they escaped while he was preoccupied with his men, "No!"

While the Shredder screamed into the night, the ninja teens escaped underground and made their way back home. Unbeknownst to them, something else was watching their fight via a satellite camera.

* * *

After making sure that they were not followed, the Hamato teens made their way back home to their parents. Upon arrival, the ninja teens found that Kirby and April were there as well awaiting their return with their parents. When Shen saw that her children were injured, she immediately went to work on treating their wounds. April, Kirby, and Yoshi decided to help out as well. While their injuries were being treated, the teens told everyone about their encounter with the Shredder after defusing the bomb.

"You were all very lucky," said Yoshi, tending to Leo's leg.

"I'm not sure we all feel very lucky, Father," said Miwa, while her mother wiped the blood off her face.

"Few have ever faced the Shredder and survived," Yoshi added.

"He was just so fast," said Mikey, thinking back to the fight, while Kirby applied ointment to his arm.

"It was like he was everywhere at once," said Donnie, while April wrapped bandages around his head.

"You were right, Father, we were over confident," said Leo, "I guess there are some things that we're just not ready for."

"Perhaps," said Yoshi, "But that no longer matters. It is clear to me now that the Shredder is a problem that will not go away. Prepare yourselves, my children. For as of this moment... We are at war."

Raph remained silent throughout the whole conversation. One might think it was because he was upset because of the loss, but, in truth, he was lost in thought. He could not stop thinking about how the Shredder acted when talking about him. Raph could not help but wonder if, on some level, the Shredder was capable of love.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the home of Tony Stark, Tony was just finishing up the latest upgrades to his iron suit when he got a voice spoke to him through the intercom system.

" _Mr. Stark, Dr. Banner was located in New York City escaping the custody of unknown assailants whilst in his Hulk state_ ," the voice informed him.

"Thanks Jarvis," said Tony, "Call Fury so S.H.E.I.L.D. can go get him."

" _There's something else you should know,_ " said Jarvis, " _I picked up footage of a battle that went on after Dr. Banner's escape._ "

"I'll look at it later, Jarvis," said Tony, getting back to the upgrades.

" _Sir, you'll want to view this now,_ " said Jarvis, and then started playing the video of the Hamato ninjas.

Tony watched as the Hamato ninjas arrived, took out the Kraang and then went on to disarm the bomb. He noticed that Donnie immediately new what to do just by looking at a Kraang. Next he saw them fight against Bradford and Xever and then the Shredder. While they lost against the Shredder, their skills were still impressive.

"Better bring this up to S.H.E.I.L.D. and the rest of the Avengers," said Tony "They're gonna wanna see this too."

* * *

 **Author's Note:** I hope you liked that I put the Avengers in there. I'm thinking of giving them more appearances in later chapters. Also, in case anyone's wondering, I made Mona Lisa a human in this story because I wasn't sure how I felt about human Raph kissing a newt.


	16. Nightmares and Bad Blood

**Author's Note:** I have an exciting announcement ㈳5 This story has been nominated for the TMNT Readers Choice Awards' Most Compelling AU award ㈴2 whether I win or not, just to be nominated was such an honor ㈳5 And I couldn't have done it without the support of my readers ㈴2 Wish me luck ㈴2

Also, it took me forever to get this one right. Though I was also working on other stories. Anyway, I hope it's good.

In regards to a couple of guest reviews:

Madame X- I'm doing my best to post new chapters as fast as I can, but this takes time.

David Case- I'll see what I can do with your requests, but I'm not making any promises. It's probably also worth noting that I was using the cinematic versions of the Avengers; they're my favorites.

* * *

 **Nightmares and Bad Blood**

It was a normal day in the city and the entire Hamato family were out for a walk. Mikey would occasionally make a joke or pun that would cause Raph to try to punch him, so Leo would have to hold him back. Miwa would laugh at her brothers while Donnie looked annoyed at them. Yoshi and Shen smiled as they all walked together through the street. Everything seemed perfect until they turned a corner and heard a sinister laugh in the shadows.

Yoshi and the children took fighting stances and waited for the mysterious enemy to show himself. Before anyone could do anything, something grabbed Shen and pulled her into the shadows. The rest of the family heard her scream and rushed to help her, but were too late.

Mikey was pulled into the shadows next, screaming just as his mother did. Donnie was pulled in as well, also screaming. And then Raph, and then Leo, even Miwa; all of them screaming. Finally, Yoshi was all alone.

"Where are my family?!" Yoshi demanded to the shadows, "What have you done with them?!"

Suddenly, a sinister, yet familiar, voice laughed and said, "You fool. Did you really think that you could keep them me?"

Yoshi turned around and found himself face to face with the man he once called his brother; Oroku Saki, the Shredder. And close behind him were six Foot ninjas holding his wife and children in their grasp.

Yoshi glared at the Shredder and said, "Let my family go, Saki!"

"They're not yours anymore, Yoshi," said Shredder. He then walked over to Raph and said, "This one in particular was never yours to begin with. I am merely taking back what is truly mine."

"Get away from my son!" Shen shrieked, trying to get free from the Foot ninjas' hold on her.

"I have no intention of harming him," Shredder said to Shen whilst looking at Raph, who was glaring at him. Shredder grabbed Raph's face and looked deep into his eyes for a moment and then said, "I can see a fire inside of you. You will be a great leader for the Foot Clan. Once you've had proper training."

Yoshi's eyes went wide with fear at that statement.

"And I can see that your siblings will make excellent additions to the clan as well," Shredder added, "With any luck, they could even be your generals."

"No!" Yoshi screamed.

He them charged at the Shredder and tried to punch him. Unfortunately, the Shredder blocked his punch and delivered several punches and kicks of his own. Yoshi was quick to counter with his own moves, this time he got a good hit in. The Shredder then struck back quickly with speed and agility that Yoshi could not track or block in time. The Shredder continued to beat Yoshi until he was down on the ground, bruised and bleeding.

"Yoshi/Dad!" Yoshi's family cried out in fear.

As Yoshi coughed up blood, the Shredder approached him with his blades extended. He knelt down to Yoshi's level and spoke to him.

"How pathetic," said the Shredder, "Did you really think you could stop me? I'm far greater than you'll ever be. You've lost. You're family and your life!"

Yoshi's eyes widened in fear as the Shredder raised his gauntlet in the air and shouted, "Now, die!"

Shen and the children screamed in horror as the Shredder brought down his gauntlet to end Yoshi's life. Yoshi wanted to move out of the way, but his body would not respond and the blades were coming closer and closer.

* * *

Yoshi woke up with a start and shot up from where he was lying. He panted heavily as he looked around and saw that he was in his and Shen's bedroom in bed, sweating bullets; it was nothing but a dream. He looked next to him and saw that his wife was not next to him. Worried, Yoshi got up and exited the room in search of Shen. He found her in the living room sitting on the couch by herself. She appeared to be lost in thought.

"Shen?" Yoshi said, getting his wife's attention.

Upon hearing her name, Shen looked up and saw her husband standing not far from where she was sitting. "Oh, Yoshi, hi," she greeted him.

"What are you doing out here this late at night?" Yoshi asked, walking over to his wife.

"I could ask you the same question," said Shen.

"I had a horrible nightmare about the Shredder," said Yoshi, sitting down on the couch next to Shen, "He found us and I was unable to protect you or the children."

"I couldn't sleep at all," said Shen, "All I could think about was the fact that we almost lost our children by his hand. The only reason he was willing to spare them was for information. Had he unmasked them, he would have figured out who they are just by looking at them."

As she talked, Shen started crying. Yoshi pulled his wife into a warm embrace and allowed her to cry on his shoulder.

"I'm just so scared," said Shen, "Not just for myself, but for you and our children too."

"I understand, my love," said Yoshi in a soothing voice, "I'm scared too."

"Yoshi, you know as well as I do that the children won't last against the Shredder," said Shen.

"I know," said Yoshi, "Despite what I said before, there is no way they can fight against the Shredder."

"Then you will agree that the city is no longer safe," said Shen, "We have only one choice."

"Yes," said Yoshi, "We must take the children and leave the city. As soon as possible."

What Yoshi and Shen did not know was that they were not the only two people having trouble sleeping. Raphael could not stop thinking about how the Shredder was causing all of those problems over him; all because he thought he was dead. He was going to get a drink and a snack from the kitchen when he heard his parents talking. He was rattled with guilt as he listened to his mother cry; he could not stop feeling like her sadness was partly because of him. When he heard them talking about moving away from New York City, Raph was taken aback. He could not believe what he was hearing. He did not want to leave the city and knew that his siblings would not want that either. He spent the rest of the night wondering what to do.

* * *

The next day, the kids all had their breakfast and got ready for the day. Raph yawned loudly as he did not get enough sleep the night before; he was too busy worrying about what his parents had talked about. After finishing up his cereal, Mikey got up and put his bowl in the sink and went to his and Donnie's room. He came with his skateboard, helmet, and padding.

"I'm headin' out to hang with Jason," said Mikey, "We're gonna record each other doing some rad tricks on his half pipe and post 'em online. It's gonna be awesome!"

"That's sounds cool," said Leo. He pouted as he added, "Miwa's dragging me to see this "Alpha Girls" movie at the theater."

"Hey, you owe me for talking me into seeing that "Space Heroes" movie," said Miwa, "Besides, it's more fun than what Donnie's doing today. All he's just going to work."

"I happen to enjoy working on my Inventions!" Donnie retorted, "This particular invention is going to be quite useful when it's finished."

"You mean the go-kart you have in the lair?" Mikey asked.

Donnie rolled his eyes and said, "It's not a go-kart, it's a turbo patrol buggy with detachable side cars."

"It still looks like a go-kart," said Miwa.

"Well, it's not!" Donnie snapped, slamming his hands on the table.

"Donatello!" Shen scolded.

"Sorry," said Donnie as he sat back down.

"D, all you ever do is work," said Mikey, "You're always working on your schoolwork, your homework, and even your science projects. You need to relax."

"Everyone has their own way to relax," said Donnie, "Working on my inventions is what I do to relax."

"Well, I relax by doing fun stuff," said Mikey, "Like the skateboarding I plan to do today."

Leo then turned to his immediate younger brother and asked, "What about you, Raph? What do you have planned for the day?"

"Me?" Raph asked, "Nothing really. Just helping out around the shop."

Miwa laughed a little and said, "And I thought Donnie's plans were boring."

"Before any of you go anywhere, we need to talk to you about something," said Yoshi.

"Please sit down, Michaelangelo," said Shen, "You all need to hear this."

Mikey sat back down at the table with his family and asked, "Are we in trouble?"

"No, sweetie, no one's in trouble," said Shen, "What we have to tell is very important."

"We're moving," said Raph, to his family's surprise, "I heard them talking about it last night when I was having a hard time sleeping."

Leo looked at his parents and asked, "Is this true?"

Yoshi sighed and said, "Yes. Last time you fought the Shredder, you all barely escaped with your lives. He could have killed you if he wanted to, but he needed information about our family's whereabouts. Imagine what might have happened if he discovered who you are."

"Last time, we weren't ready," said Miwa, "But next time we will be."

"There won't be a next time," said Yoshi.

"Dad, you were the one who said to prepare ourselves because we're at war," said Mikey.

"That was then," said Yoshi, "I have changed my mind. Your mother and I have decided that it will be safer to leave the city."

"But, dad, what about April and her dad?" Donnie asked, "The Kraang might still be after them. We can't just turn our backs on them."

"If I recall correctly, there is a league of heroes that are just as capable of facing the Kraang," said Yoshi, "They are called the Avengers."

"What we need to do is resume our training and make our stand here," said Leo.

"Enough!" Yoshi yelled, slamming his fist on the table, "This decision is final. This week will be spent packing your things. We will leave the city as soon as possible. I will continue to train you so that you may defend yourselves. But it will be done in our new home."

With that said, Yoshi got up from the table and walked away. Shen got up to follow him, stopping only to tell her children, "You best use the time you have to break the news to your friends."

Leo grabbed her shoulder and said, "Mom, please, reconsider."

"I'm sorry, honey," said Shen, "But this is for your own good."

And with that, Shen left to start working on advertising a 'going-out-of-business' sale, leaving the kids to think about what she and her husband just said.

"This can't be happening," said Mikey, in disbelief.

"They can't actually be thinking that running away is the only way," said Leo, "Dad's a ninja master. He has to realize that we need to make our stand here."

"He's also a father," said Miwa, "And right now, that part of him is saying that we're not safe."

' _And it's all my fault_ ,' Raph thought to himself, ' _All because the Shredder thinks I'm dead and blames dad_.'

"What do we do?" Donnie asked.

"I guess there's only one thing we _can_ do," said Leo, "We'll just have to find the best way to tell our friends."

"Can't we just convince mother and father that there's another way?" Mikey asked.

"I'm sorry, Mikey," said Leo, "But I don't think that's gonna happen. No matter what we do or say."

Raph then got up from the table and said, "I'm going to the lair."

"To do what?" Mikey asked.

"What do you think?" Raph called, and then left the house, shutting the door behind him.

"He's gonna go punch the dummy, isn't he?" Miwa asked.

"He always does that when he gets mad," said Leo, "So, yes."

"Better he takes his anger out on the dummy than me," said Mikey.

"You best be off, Michelangelo," said Shen, "You don't want to keep Jason waiting."

"Oh right. Jason!" Mikey remembered, "Gotta go, guys."

And with that, Mikey grabbed his gear and left the house. Leo looked like he wanted to try once again to convince Yoshi to change his mind. Unfortunately, it seemed like that might be impossible; he said himself his mind was made up.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the lair, Raph was punching away at the training dummy; the whole time thinking about his father's decision to move away and the fear that both his parents shared. He then thought back to the fight against the Shredder and how all four of his siblings got very badly hurt. And it was all because of him; because the Shredder believed he was dead.

As Raph stopped punching and caught his breath, he started to wonder if he could make their suffering stop by facing the Shredder. It seemed only right, seeing as the Shredder is his biological father.

"There is a better way," a familiar voice said.

Raph turned around to see Donnie at the entrance to the lair. "What are you doing here?" Raph asked, "And how did you know I was thinking about that?"

"1) I came down here to check on you and work on my invention," said Donnie, "And 2) I can read minds. Remember?"

"Oh right," said Raph, "Well, can you blame me? The main reason the Shredder's doing this is because of me. You guys are right that we need to make our stand here. But I don't want you guys risking your lives battling my biological father."

Donnie sighed and said, "I can tell your heart was in the right place, Raph. But that idea seems pretty drastic."

"Maybe you're right," said Raph, "Tell you what, I'll sleep on it tonight. And then see if I feel any different in the morning. How's that sound?"

"That sounds fair," said Donnie.

"Cool," said Raph, "And, Donnie, could you do me a little favor and not mention this to the family? I don't wanna worry them."

Donnie thought about it for a minute and then said, "Okay. I won't."

"Great," said, "Thanks, man."

"Anytime, big brother," said Donnie.

With that, the two brothers parted ways to do their own things. However, Raph could not ignore the fact that the Shredder had to be stopped if his family was ever going to be safe. And if anyone was going to pull it off, it might as well be him, the Shredder's son.

* * *

At the halfpipe, Jason was skateboarding with his pet Gecko, Lars, doing some amazing stunts, while Mikey recorded it on his phone. After his big finish, Jason signal for Mikey to stop recording and then got off to let Mikey go next.

"Your turn, Mikey," said Jason, "I'll record you now."

"Okay," said Mikey, grabbing his skateboard and heading over to the halfpipe. After he climbed to the top, Mikey got into the starting position and called to his friend, "Ready, Jason?"

"Almost," said Jason, who was getting his phone ready for recording. Once he got the video camera up, Jason called to Mikey, "Okay, Mikey, let 'er rip!"

"Right," said Mikey, preparing to skate, "Booyakasha!"

Mikey started skating down the halfpipe. He started out well enough, but then he remembered the events of the morning and things started to go downhill. Mikey started to become so focused on the fact this may be the last time and Jason get to do stuff like this together that he was unable to concentrate on controlling his board properly. Mikey became so out of control until he finally fell off his board and crashed into the ground. Jason immediately stopped recording and rushed to help his friend.

"Hey, Mikey, are you okay?" Jason asked in concern.

Mikey groaned abd said, "Could've been worse."

"What happened back there, man?" Jason asked, "One minute you're totally radical and the next minute you're all over the place; and not in a good way. That's not like you."

"I know," said Mikey, sitting up, "I guess I'm just a little distracted right now."

"By what?" Jason asked.

Mikey sigh sadly and said, "My parents wanna move the family away from the city."

"What?!" Jason asked, causing Lars to nearly fall, "Are kidding me? Why?"

"They think that the city isn't safe anymore," said Mikey, "The wanna take my siblings and me someplace safer."

"You can't leave," said Jason, "Nobody gets me like you do. I'll be all alone. Can't you tell your parents not to move."

"My brothers and sister and I tried," said Mikey, "But their minds are made up."

"Great," said Jason, "So what do we do?"

"I guess all we can do is enjoy the time we have left until the moving day," said Mikey.

"This doesn't sound like you at all," said Jason, "You sound like you're giving up. The Mikey I know never gives up so easily."

"What else can I do?" Mikey asked, "I wanna stay in New York, but I have to stay with my family."

"Mikey..." Jason said, trying to comfort his best friend.

"I'm sorry, Jason," said Mikey, "But that's just how it has to be."

In response, Jason sighed and said, "I guess there's not much more I can say." Jason then put on his best smile and said, "Except maybe suggesting that we go catch a movie instead of this skateboarding stuff."

"That might be a good idea," said Mikey, "My head's not in the right place right now."

The two friends then left the halfpipe and went to the theater. What they did not notice was that a shadowy figure moved swiftly past them.

The Shadowy figure appeared to be searching for something, a person or maybe a place. He then laid eyes on the Bradford Dojo. He smirked and swiftly ran towards it. The figure stealthily made his way inside through the skyline and left a note on one of the Chris Bradford pictures.

' _That should get his attention_ ,' the figure thought before leaving.

After the mystery person was gone, the Foot Clan ninja that was put in charge of the Dojo went inside the office and found the note on the picture. He took the note and read it. He then gave an excuse to the students and rushed to inform his master, the Shredder.

* * *

At his lair, the Shredder was contemplating how to find Yoshi and his family, as well as what to do about Bradford and Xever's current "condition", when the Foot ninja he left in charge came running into his throne room. Once he was in front of the throne, the ninja bowed before his master.

"Rise and report," said the Shredder, "I assume you had a reason to come here during today's lessons at the dojo."

"The very dojo you're only in charge of because I got turned into a _freak_!" Bradford emphasized.

"I went into the office and found this attached to one of the pictures," said the ninja as he stood up and presented the note, "It was addressed to you, master."

The Shredder took the note and read it.

 _I have the information you want, plus some additional that you might be interested in. Meet me on the roof of the fortune cookie factory tonight at 9:00 p.m. and I will negotiate with you. Come alone._

-Hamato Clan ninja Kurogane.

"Interesting," said the Shredder.

"What is it Master Shredder?" Bradford asked.

"One of Yoshi's students claims he wants to give me the information I want and more," said the Shredder.

"A Hamato Clan is actually willing to betray his allies?" Bradford asked.

"Of course not," said Shredder, "He is clearly trying to bait me into a trap. But I think we can turn his trap for me into a trap for him. And I think your new appearance could help with that."

"Really, Master?" Bradford asked, intrigued, "Tell me."

* * *

Back at the antique store, Shen was working on some fliers for a 'going out of business' sale, when she heard the bell ring. She looked and saw that a man had entered and went to see if he needed help.

"Excuse me, sir, do you need any help finding anything?" Shen asked.

"I'm just looking for something for my girlfriend," he answered, "She has a birthday coming up and I wanna get her something nice."

"Well, I just might have what you're looking for," said Shen, "I have a variety of items from jewelry to nicknacks. I'm sure you'll find something that will make her very happy."

"Thanks," said the man.

"Mom, are your designs ready?" Donnie asked, as he entered the store, "Not that I'm all that crazy about."

"Donatello, we talked about this," said Shen, "It's what's best."

"I know," said Donnie. He stopped in mid walk when he saw the customer. His eyes went wide in shock and all he could say was, "Hi."

"Hi," said the customer.

Donnie took out his phone and asked, "Could I get a picture of us together for my myface page?"

"Sure," the customer, shrugging, "Why not?"

The customer stood next to Donnie as he got his phone camera ready and took a picture. Pleased with the picture, Donnie said, "Thanks, Mr. Stark."

"No prob," said the customer. He looked at the picture and said, "Hey, that looks great. You should definitely make that your new wallpaper."

"I'll think about it," said Donnie, star struck.

"Hold on," said Shen, "Donatello, how do you know this man's name? Do you know him?"

"Mom, this is Tony Stark!" Said Donnie, still star struck, "He's the owner of Stark Industries! And he's in a relationship with the current CEO, Pepper Potts!"

This took Shen by surprise. The customer, Tony Stark, simply held up his hands and said, "You got me."

"Well, then I think I should turn your attention to something more fitting," said Shen, "Follow me."

Shen led Tony to the display case of jewelry. She picked out a necklace. It had a gold chain and held a pink stone in the shape of a heart.

"Pieces like this are not easy to come by," said Shen, "The heart is a way to tell her you love her and the stone is a pink sapphire; which more rare than a diamond."

"Perfect," said Tony, "Wrap it up. I'll take it."

"Right," said Shen, "I can tell this is going to make your lady friend very happy on her birthday."

"Thanks," said Tony. When Shen went to put the necklace into a box for him, Tony noticed the papers behind the counter and that they were drafts for fliers to advertise a 'going out of business' sale. "I don't mean to seem nosy, but what's up with the going out of business sale?"

"Oh, that?" Shen asked, "We're planning to move away."

"Really?" Tony asked, "Why's that?"

"My husband and I are worried that this city might not be the best place for our children," said Shen.

"You have other kids?" Tony asked out of curiosity.

"Five," Donnie said, "I'm number four. I have an older sister, two older brothers, and a younger brother."

"Yes. Exactly," said Shen, "Donatello, would you mind taking those flier ideas to the back?"

"Sure," said Donnie, unenthusiastically, as he picked up the papers and went to the back.

"He doesn't seem to enthusiastic about the move," said Tony.

"None of the children are," Shen said with a sigh, "But my husband and I really want to do what's best for them."

"And you think leaving New York is that?" Tony asked.

Shen thought about it for a second and then answered, "I'm really not sure. I just want my family to be safe."

"I know it's not my place, but in my experience, you can find something bad about just about any place," said Tony, "If you and your family are happy and you have a life in a place, that place is your home. And home is worth fighting for."

As Shen took in his words, she started to wonder if leaving really was the right choice. She then thought back to the conversation with her children; they were right, if they moved away, the Shredder would just find them there and they would move again. Before long, they would be forced to move around all the time and never find home again.

She was brought out of her thoughts by Donnie's voice calling, "Mom? Are you okay?"

Shen immediately snapped out of her trance and said, "Yes, Donatello. I'm fine. Just thinking." She looked back at Tony and said, "Let me ring up this necklace for you. Will you be using cash or card?"

"Cash," said Tony.

After paying for the necklace, Tony thanked Shen and left with Pepper's present in hand, suggesting that Donnie sometime in the future get a picture of him in his iron suit. Shen thanked him for shopping at her store and to come again, while Donnie said he would the iron suit picture idea in mind. Needless to say, Shen and Yoshi had a lot to talk about later.

Along the way back to where he was staying during his time in New York, Tony dialed a number on his cellphone.

When the person on the other end answered, Tony said to him, "Hey, Cap, Stark. Listen, I think you might be starting to rub off on me. Cause I just said something to someone that sounded more like something you might say. Also, I think I might have a lead on those ninja kids."

* * *

At the theater, Leo and Miwa were just leaving after seeing the "Alpha Girls" movie and saw Mikey and Jason leaving as well.

"Mikey! Jason!" Leo called.

The two boys turned around and saw Mikey's sister and oldest brother waving to them. Mikey smiled and called back, "Hey, Leo! Hey, Miwa!"

The four kids joined together and Miwa asked, "What are you guys doing here? I thought you were skateboarding."

"Mikey's head wasn't in the game, so we decided to catch the new "Galaxy Wars" movie," said Jason.

"Lucky you," said Leo, "I got stuck watching a chick flick."

"It's not a chick flick, Leo," said Miwa, "Alpha Girls" is about a team of teenage super hero girls."

"Like I said, chick flick," said Leo.

Miwa groaned at Leo and then asked Mikey in a nicer tone, "Is something wrong, Mikey?"

Mikey frowned and then answered, "It's the move."

"Oh," said Leo, "I'm sorry, little brother. I wish we could convince mom and dad to change their minds. But they're only trying to do what's best for us."

"I know, Leo," said Mikey, "I just wish it didn't have to be this way."

"We all do, Mikey," said Miwa, hugging her baby brother, "Believe me, we all do."

"Even me," said Jason.

After that tender moment, the kids decided to head home for the evening. Miwa, Leo, and Mikey decided to walk Jason home before heading back home themselves. Upon entering, they were greeted by a smiling Donnie.

"What are you so happy about?" Mikey asked.

"You guys are not gonna believe who shopped in our family's store today," said Donnie, still smiling.

"Judging by how happy you are, I'd say it was someone famous," said Miwa.

"It most definitely was!" Said Donnie, excitedly, "Today, I just met Tony Stark! Aka, Iron Man!"

"What?!" Leo asked in shock as Miwa's eyes went wide, "You met Tony Freaking Stark?!"

"You met Iron Man?!" Mikey asked.

"You bet!" Donnie happily said. He pulled out his phone and showed his siblings the picture as he said, "Here's the proof. I just posted this on myface a little after taking it."

Miwa, Leo, and Mikey looked at the picture and could tell, without a doubt, it was real. Miwa, Leo, and Mikey could not help but feel a little bit jealous.

"How come you got to meet Iron Man?" Mikey asked, pouting.

"He was shopping for his girlfriend," said Donnie, "I just happened to be here at the time. He bought really beautiful pink sapphire heart necklace."

"What was he like?" Leo asked.

"He was pretty nice," said Donnie, "Didn't seem to mind a fan of his taking his picture."

"Can't say I'm surprised," said Miwa, "I hear that guy loves attention."

"Yeah, it's true," said Donnie, shrugging, "He even suggested I get a shot of him in his iron suit if I see him in it. He also said I should consider making the picture of him and me my new wallpaper."

"You're not actually gonna do it, are you?" Leo asked.

"I don't know," said Donnie, "Maybe."

"Hey, where's Raph?" Mikey asked, noticing his hotheaded brothers' absence.

"He said he was to practice hockey with Casey," said Donnie.

"It's too bad he's not here," said Yoshi as he and Shen entered the living room. "We were hoping to talk to all of you together about something."

"What is it?" Leo asked.

"Well, after Mr. Stark came by, I talked to your father," said Shen, "And we've been thinking-"

Shen was interrupted by a knock on the door. She went to answer it and found, to her surprise, Casey.

"Casry?" Shen said.

"Hey, Mrs. K," said Casey. He presented a helmet and continued, "Raph forgot his helmet at practice."

"He called me earlier and said he was going to be late coming home," said Shen.

"What?" Casey asked, "No. He left before me saying there was something important he had to do."

"He did?" Shen asked, clearly shocked; the rest of the family was just as shocked.

"He didn't come home?" Casey asked, also shocked.

"No," said Yoshi, "He told us he was with you, so we had no reason to suspect otherwise."

"Oh my God," said Casey, "Does this mean he ran away? Should we call the cops?"

"I don't know," said Shen.

"This doesn't make sense," said Miwa, "Where would Raph go?"

Everyone tried to think of where Raph could have gone. That was when Donnie remembered his talk with Raph earlier that day.

"He wouldn't. Would he?" Donnie asked in a whisper, "Maybe."

"Do you know something, Donatello?" Splinter asked.

Donnie looked up and said, "I might have an idea where Raph is going. At the time, I didn't think he was serious."

"You know where he is?" Casey asked.

"It's just an idea," said Donnie, "But, right now, it's the only lead we have."

"Good enough for Casey Jones," said Casey, "Let's go there and talk to him."

"Sorry, Casey, but I think it's best if you leave this to us, Raph's family," said Donnie.

Are you serious?!" Casey asked, "Raph's my best friend! I'm not abandoning him!"

"We're not asking you to abandon him," said Miwa, "It's just that there are some things only a family can help with."

"But don't worry," said Leo, "As soon as we find out what's wrong, we'll call you and let you know."

"In the meantime, I'll take you home," said Shen, "We don't want your father to worry, do?"

Casey sighed and said, "Okay. But don't forget to call me."

With that, Shen took Casey outside to her car to drive him home, leaving Yoshi and the kids.

"Where do you think Raph went?" Miwa asked.

"Forgive me, Raph," Donnie muttered and then told his family, "I think he went after the Shredder."

"What?!" Leo asked.

"Are you kidding me?!" Miwa asked.

"Why would he do that?!" Mikey

"Are you sure that's where he is going?" Yoshi asked.

"I'm sure of it," said Donnie, "Raph feels that it's his responsibility to deal with the Shredder because they're blood. So he wants to handle it alone."

"He can't be serious," said Leo, "He must not be thinking clearly."

"He is not," said Yoshi, "We need to find him before it's too late."

"But how?" Mikey asked, "We don't even know where he is? And this city's huge!"

"I might be able to track his phone," said Donnie, "But we'd still need a way to get to him fast. It might take too long to get him on foot and we can't risk the Foot Clan seeing dad's car."

"You invented a way for us to get around," said Leo, "It's sitting in the lair right now."

Donnie had no idea what Leo meant at first. However, it was easy to figure it out. "Oh no," said Donnie, "No, Leo, not the Turbo Patrol Buggy. It's not ready!"

"Our brother is out there right now and he's not thinking straight!" Said Leo, "It's ready enough for the four of us."

"Five," said Yoshi, "I am coming with you."

"Dad?" Mikey asked.

"For all you know, the Shredder could already be there," said Yoshi, "But, more importantly, my son needs me."

The kids looked at each other, wondering if letting Yoshi come was best. On the one hand, he could get hurt worse than with Snake. On the other hand, they were no match for the Shredder, and Raph needed their help. They all nodded, making their choice.

"Alright," said Leo, "Let's move."

* * *

Meanwhile, Raph was waiting on tbe roof of the fortune cookie factory for Shredder. He was starting to become anxious. Any moment now, Shredder would show up and Raph would take him down. He was positive that the Shredder could not resist the bait he had laid out for him.

Raph was brought out of his thoughts by the Shredder's voice saying, "I take it you are Kurogane."

Raph swiftly turned around and found the Shredder standing not too far away. Raph gave a look of determination as he watched the Shredder stride closer to him.

"Yes, I am," said Raph.

"Do you have the information you promised?" Shredder asked.

Raph held up a binder full of paper and said, "Inside this binder is all of the information I have on Hamato Yoshi, my fellow apprentices, Tang Shen and her kids, and other secrets. Everything you want to know and more is inside here. All I want in return is for you to swear on your honor that you won't harm my loved ones, whoever they may be."

The Shredder seemed to be considering the idea. Raph was inwardly hoping he would take the bait, otherwise his plan would be for not.

"Your terms sound reasonable, boy," said the Shredder, "Very well, give me the information, and I swear not to harm your loved ones. No matter who they turn out to be."

"That's all I needed to hear," said Raph. He held out the binder and said, "Take it."

The Shredder waljed over to Raph and took the binder from him. He opened it, expecting to find information. However, to his shock, the binder held only blank paper. He looked up in time to find Raph preparing to stab him with his sai. Shredder quickly blocked the blow with his gauntlet.

"You little brat!" The Shredder spat, still blade locked with Raph, "You lied to me!"

"You're darn right I did!" Said Raph, "Why would I ever betray my master? I had to get you out here somehow. And I knew you would never be able to resist a chance get info."

"I'll teach you to double cross the Shredder!" The Shredder yelled and then pushed Raph away.

Raph stood up again, both sais in hand, and roared as he charged the Shredder. He tried stabbing and slashing at the Shredder, but the Shredder was a ninja master and easily countered his every move. Raph tried again, earning the same result. Raph tried once more, only this time, he found himself caught by a giant hand. He looked up and saw the mutated Chrus Bradford.

"Bradford?" Raph asked, "What are _you_ doing here?"

"Master Shredder wanted to bring back up," said Bradford, "You see, he was pretty sure you were lying the entire time."

"And I was right," said the Shredder, "However, I must praise you for efforts. It was clever of you to use my desire for information to your advantage. Your trap was near perfect. You remind me somewhat of myself."

"Don't say that," said Raph, "We're nothing alike!"

"Let's agree to disagree," said the Shredder, "However, I was promised information, and I will have it."

"I'll never talk," said Raph.

"We shall soon see," said the Shredder, "Bradford, bring him."

"Yes, master," said Bradford, he looked down at his captive and said, "Let's be off."

Bradford and the Shredder were just about to leave with Raph in tow when they heard a voice shout, "Let him go, Shredder!"

Shredder turned around and saw four ninjas on the rooftop. Shredder knew right away realized who the older ninja was.

"It's been too long, Yoshi," said Shredder, "How are Shen and the twins these days."

"They are not your concern, Saki," said Yoshi, "Let Kurogane go now. Your fight is with me."

"I'm afraid I can't do that, Yoshi," said Shredder, "You see, I still need to find Shen and the twins. If I end killing you now, I will need to get that information some other way."

"Let him go!" Yoshi demanded.

"You and your remaining apprentices are welcome to rescue him if you can," said Shredder.

Yoshi growled and then said to Leo, "Ryu, I'm going to fight the Shredder myself. I want the rest of you to rescue Kurogane."

"Hai, sensei," said Leo, "Guys, go for the dog!"

The four teens ran at Bradford, while Yoshi unsheathed his sword and charged Shredder. The two masters clashed blades with one another, while the teens surrounded Bradford, weapons at the ready.

"Let him go, Dogpound!" Mikey shouted.

"Dogpound?" Leo asked.

"Kinda fits, don't you think?" Mikey asked.

Leo looked him over and then said, "You might be right."

"If course I'm right," said Mikey, "I'm awesome at naming stuff. Even mutants."

"Could you forget about his nickname and help me?!" Raph shouted, struggling in the newly named Dogpound's grasp.

"I'd like to see you try," said Bradford, "Try to attack me, and you might end up hurting him."

"How about this?" Miwa asked and then swiftly kicked Dogpound in his crotch.

Dogpound whined like a dog and dropped Raph. Raph himself took the opportunity to punch Dogpound in the face before he walked away to rejoin his siblings. He was suddenly punched in tbe arm by Miwa.

"Ow!" Raph exclaimed, "What was that for?!"

"For being a stupid reckless idiot!" Miwa shouted, "What were you thinking?!"

"Yeah, man!" Mikey added, "Trying to take on tbe Shredder alone?! All of together barely made a dent in him!"

"You've done reckless stuff before, but this takes tbe cake!" Leo yelled.

"I'm sorry," said Donnie, "I had to tell them."

Raph groaned and then said, "I had to. It's my responsibility. We're connected."

"It doesn't matter," said Leo, "You're one of us. We stick together."

"And right now, our master needs us," said Donnie.

"Right," said Leo, "We'll talk more about this later. Let's move!"

The teens immediately rushed to their father's aid. At the same time, Yoshi and Shredder were still clashing weapons. Yoshi with his sword and Shredder with his gauntlets.

"Why must you insist on this vendetta, Saki?" Yodhi asked, "Why can't you just leave my family in peace?"

"You don't deserve them!" Shredder declared as he kicked Yoshi in the stomach, sending him flying across the rooftop. He stalked over to Yoshi, blades ready as he said, "You never did. You stole Tang Shen."

"Shen chose me out of love," said Yoshi as he stood back up, "You could have chosen to be happy for us and we could have been a true family. Shen, myself, Miwa, Leonardo, you, and even Sousuke."

"Never speak of my son!" Shredder shouted, "It's because of you that he is gone!"

Shredder tried to strike Yoshi down, only for Yoshi to dodge and grab his sword again. He charged at Shredder and the two started clashing weapons and moves once again.

"If you had just left us alone, Sousuke would have a mother, a brother and a sister!" Shredder shouted, "However, I am willing to forgive Shen and the children. After, Shen was not involved, and children can't help who their fathers are."

"You will stay away from them!" Yoshi shouted, charging once more.

Yoshi came close to cutting Shredder when he briefly remembered who the Shredder used to be... Saki. Part of him still cared for his brother and could not bring himself to take his life. Unfortunately, the feeling was not mutual. Shredder used his gauntlet to stab Yoshi in the side.

Yoshi gasped as he fell to tbe ground, holding his wound. As the blood came pouring out, Shredder looked down at Yoshi and said, "Once you're gone, everything that was once yours will be mine."

As the Shredder prepared to make the killing blow, Yoshi closed his eyes and waited for it to come. When it did not come, Yoshi opened his eyes and saw that Raph had charged him and knocked him down. Miwa, Leo, Donnie and Mikey soon rushed over to their father's side to help him.

Raph glared at the Shredder and said, "Stay away from my master." Which was his way of saying, "Stay away from my father."

"You little-" the Shredder said as he stood back up.

"We need to get him out of here," said Donnie as he and Miwa supported Yoshi, "I won't last long out here in his condition."

"Right," said Raph, "Naoto!"

"On it!" Mikey shouted, "Seeya, sucka!"

Mikey threw a smoke bomb on the ground, creating a huge cloud of smoke. By the time the smoke cleared, Yoshi and the teens were gone. All the Shredder could do was roar in anger. However, he mentally swore that he would find them again.

* * *

After the fight, the teens hurried to change out of their ninja clothes and get Yoshi to the nearest hospital. When the doctors took him in and asked about his injuries, the teens said that it was caused by the Purple Dragons. The police had to be called as well.

Shen arrived just as the police finished getting statements from all five of the Hamato siblings. Upon seeing Raph with his siblings, Shen pulled him into an embrace and kissed him.

"I'm so glad you're safe," she said. After the police left, Shen looked him in the face and asked, "What were you thinking?!"

Raph was silent for a moment and then he answered, "I guess I wasn't. Not clearly anyway."

"Raph, going after the Shredder alone was both reckless and stupid," said Miwa.

"At the time, I thought I had no choice," said Raph, "Tbe Shredder's doing this because of me. He thinks I'm dead and is using that as an excuse to hurt people! I couldn't stand by and do nothing!"

Leo put his hand on his brothers' shoulder and said, "You didn't need to do it on your own."

"The Shredder is my blood," said Raph, "That makes him my responsibility."

"But we're your family," said Miwa, "That means we always have each others back."

"We're stronger together than we are apart," said Mikey, putting his hand on Raph's shoulder.

"The Shredder may share your blood, but we grew up together," said Donnie, "We always stood by you. And we always will. Ni matter where we are."

"Which reminds me," said Shen, "Your father and I had a talk. And we decided that we've changed our minds."

The teens were surprised to hear that. And then Mikey spoke up, "We're staying in New York?"

"Yes," said Shen.

"How?" Raph asked, "When did you decide this?"

"After Mr. Stark talked about how home is worth fighting for, I realized that if we moved away, we would keep on doing that over and over again. And we would never have a home," said Shen, "The only way we can have a home, is to make our stand here."

"Thanks, mom," said Leo as he and his siblings hugged their mother.

Raph then realized what name his mother said, "Wait a minute. Mr. Stark? As Tony Stark? As in Iron Man?!"

"Yes," she said, "He was shopping for his girlfriend's birthday today. He even let Donatello take a picture with him."

"What?!" Raph asked.

"It's true," said Mikey, slightly jealous, "We saw it."

"Here it is," said Donnie, presenting the picture on his phone, "Pretty cool, huh?"

"I am so jealous right now," Raph grumpled.

At that moment, the doctor came out and called, "Are you Mrs. Kurama?"

"Yes, I am," said Shen, "How is my husband?"

"His condition is stable. But he'll have to stay for observation," the doctor explained, "You and your children can see him now."

"Thank you, doctor," said Shen. She looked at her kids and said, "Let's go see your father."

The kids nodded and followed their mother to the room that their father was in. He was lying in bed breathing steadily. He opened his eyes and smiled when he saw his family.

"Are you all alright?" Yoshi asked.

"We're supposed to ask you that," said Miwa, "But yeah. We're alright."

"I'm sorry, dad," said Raph, "This was all my fault. All because I was reckless and wanted to take care of the Shredder on my own."

"It's alright, Raphael," said Yoshi, "Your intentions were pure."

Raph smiled as he said, "Mom told us you changed your mind."

"Indeed," said Yoshi, "This city is our home. If we allow the Shredder to chase us away from our home, we will never be free."

"That's why we need to make our stand here," said Leo, "It's the only way."

"I was so afraid of losing you, I could not see that running away would not help," said Yoshi.

"We'll be sure to keep up our training on our own until you get home," said Miwa.

"As well as our homework," said Donnie, "And our chores."

"That's good to hear," said Yoshi. He then looked at Raph and said, "Oh, and Raphael, you're grounded for a week."

Raph's jaw dropped and his siblings started snickering at his misfortune.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** To those who are wondering, I imagine Alpha Girls as a Sailor Moon type of thing. And Galaxy Wars is supposed to parody Star Wars.


End file.
